Statement from Max Margulis

I have stayed silent regarding the atrocities committed towards African-Americans such as George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and countless others. The main reason for this is because I felt it was not my place to say anything. Who am I to comment about this? I’ve lived a very sheltered and protected life. I have not faced the type of hate and racism directed towards African-Americans. I have not experienced the fear they go through. That being said, I am keenly aware of the situation at hand.

In April 2015, I was in Baltimore with my family at the Orioles/Red Sox game during the Freddie Gray protests. As we walked to Camden Yards that day we saw people marching and demonstrating. We walked along route with them on the way to the stadium. It was surreal. We did not feel like we were in danger. Honestly, we felt their pain and anger.

A few years ago, I was a passenger driving with John Simmons and Shereef Taylor to Washington, D.C. for a basketball tournament. We got pulled over in New Jersey for something minor. The police officer was kind enough to let us go with a warning. Afterwards, as we continued our trip to D.C. – John and Shereef mentioned how the officer likely saw me in the car and that was the reason he let us go with relative ease. I’ve been thinking a lot about that lately. What if I was not in the vehicle with them? What if (God forbid) someone I know and love becomes a victim of this kind of senseless violence? The cruelty towards African-Americans, the police brutality, the racism, the hatred – it has to stop. It’s unconscionable that we are still dealing with this in the year 2020.

I always say that Max’s All Stars is more than a basketball team. We are a family and I am our leader. It’s my job to speak, especially in difficult times like these. Max’s All Stars must use our platform and resources to speak out on matters of injustice and make contributions to organizations that fight for what is right. Hopefully, whatever small difference we make will inspire change in the world that we so desperately need.

If anyone has suggestions for organizations to support and things we can do to help the cause, please contact us with that information.