Kyrie Irving to help produce 1-hour TV special on horrific killing of Breonna Taylor

Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving will help produce a special TV show, which will focus on the tragic murder of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor. The 1-hour special will be called '#SAYHERNAME: BREONNA TAYLOR', and will highlight police brutality, specifically focusing on black women and how to help demand justice. Taylor was killed by police officers who shot her multiple times at her apartment in Louisville.

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Breonna Taylor TV Special: Kyrie Irving will help produce Breonna Taylor TV Special

The special program will air on Wednesday night, 7:00 PM EST (Thursday, 4:30 AM IST) on PlayersTV broadcast network. The co-founder of Black Lives Matter, Alicia Garza, journalist Jemele Hill, Massachusetts Democratic US Rep Ayanna Pressley and rapper Common will join Irving for the broadcast. In his statement, Common spoke about the men who murdered Taylor, who are still walking the streets.

"What we the people are asking for is justice, A True Justice that knows no prejudice, racism or sexism," Common explained. The 48-year-old rapper further thanked Irving and Players TV for their support to present the program on a 'very important discussion which is led by Black Women who have been leading this fight for Justice and Peace and Equality'. The broadcast will feature some important calls for action which could help, like calls to offices of city and state officials, voter registrations and social media posts which will make people aware of Taylor's murder and case. 

Breonna Taylor death: Breonna Taylor TV special to have Kyrie Irving and rapper Common as guests

Kyrie Irving stated that when society is calling out police brutality and social injustices, it is important to highlight how all these behaviours will directly impact black women. "I stand for Breonna Taylor, Sandra Bland, and the countless women whose names are never said but have shared the same unfortunate fate," Kyrie Irving said. "I will continue to champion those who are working to enact change for and to empower Black, Native, Indigenous, Hispanic, and women of colour. I am equally committed to creating platforms like the #SAYHERNAME: Breonna Taylor special, that provides support, solutions, and sustainable impact.”

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Justice for Breonna Taylor death: Breonna Taylor's case details

On March 13, three Louisville Metro police officers shot unarmed Black woman Breonna Taylor in her apartment a little after midnight. Taylor had no criminal history and worked as an emergency medical technician. Louisville police have stated that the plainclothed officers identified themselves before they entered Taylor's apartment, who was in bed with her boyfriend. However, Taylor's family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit which claimed that the officers did not knock or identify themselves before entering and 'blindly fired' over 20 shots into Taylor's house. Almost four months after the incident, only one officer has been fired while none of the officers have been charged with a crime. 

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Irving is among many NBA players who have used their influence and platform to speak up against police brutality and systemic racism following the death of George Floyd on May 25. Last month, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and several other black athletes and entertainers came together to form a voting rights group called More Than a Vote to support African Americans and their voting rights.

NBA legend Michael Jordan pledged $100 million over the next years to organizations which support the Black Lives Matter movement. Several other players like Steph Curry, Trae Young, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard attended the Black Lives Matter protests going on in their country. Last month, the NBA and National Basketball Players Association also agreed to players write messages related to social justice and equality on their jerseys, which included 'Say Her Name'.

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(Image source: AP)