In today’s cancel culture, can we still worship our fallen heroes?
Thirteen-year-old me was watching a highlight video of one of my sports heroes, Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. It was not a basketball highlight video. Instead, I heard the words – “assault”, “strangling”, “consent”, and other things that required an alarming amount of Google search. The hearing was explicit, and my hero hung his head and cried beside his wife, who looked both supportive and empty. In another video are more words – “settlement” and “apologies”.
My hero went on to have an illustrious 20year career with five championships and plenty of smiles. He even made it onto my mobile phone wallpaper a bunch of times – the Black Mamba, the growl, the excellence, and the… rapist? These days, one in every hundred Instagram comments offers a solemn reminder of a time that Kobe Bryant would rather forget. He was acquitted of the charges, but was he acquitted in the court of public opinion? If the same thing happens today, will he still get to lace up his sneakers?
This story is from the August 2019 edition of MEN 'S FOLIO Singapore.
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This story is from the August 2019 edition of MEN 'S FOLIO Singapore.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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