{"id":605879,"date":"2021-07-29T12:35:22","date_gmt":"2021-07-29T16:35:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=605879"},"modified":"2021-07-29T12:35:37","modified_gmt":"2021-07-29T16:35:37","slug":"lawmakers-accuse-nba-players-of-profiting-off-slave-labor-through-chinese-sponsorship-deals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/lawmakers-accuse-nba-players-of-profiting-off-slave-labor-through-chinese-sponsorship-deals\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawmakers Accuse NBA Players Of \u2018Profiting Off Slave Labor\u2019 Through Chinese Sponsorship Deals"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flawmakers-accuse-nba-players-of-profiting-off-slave-labor-through-chinese-sponsorship-deals%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=605879&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Lawmakers are demanding NBA players terminate sponsorship contracts with Chinese companies whose cotton supply chains have been linked to forced labor in China\u2019s northwestern Xinjiang region.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAmericans can\u2019t and shouldn\u2019t conduct business with companies and players that profit through human slavery,\u201d Republican Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/newsletters\/politico-china-watcher\/2021\/07\/29\/lawmakers-nba-players-profiting-from-slave-labor-in-china-493767\">told Politico<\/a>. \u201cAnd that includes NBA players \u2014 they can\u2019t sign endorsement deals and benefit off slave labor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Perry and other Republican lawmakers including Wisconsin Rep. Tom Tiffany, Texas Rep. Ronny Johnson and Florida Rep. Greg Steube are pressuring the Treasury Department\u2019s Office of Foreign Assets Control to place NBA players\u2019 Chinese sponsors on a blacklist prohibiting U.S. citizens from doing business with them, Politico <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/newsletters\/politico-china-watcher\/2021\/07\/29\/lawmakers-nba-players-profiting-from-slave-labor-in-china-493767\">reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf they didn\u2019t know [their corporate sponsor] sourced slave labor cotton from Xinjiang, that\u2019s one thing,\u201d Perry <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/newsletters\/politico-china-watcher\/2021\/07\/29\/lawmakers-nba-players-profiting-from-slave-labor-in-china-493767\">told Politico<\/a>. \u201cBut if they do know \u2026 they are complicit with slavery.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7248107\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"36\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7248107\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-7248107\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-scaled-1.jpg\" alt=\"WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 10: Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) speaks as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies before the House Committee On Foreign Affairs March 10, 2021 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. Blinken is expected to take questions about the Biden administration&#039;s priorities for U.S. foreign policy. (Photo by Ting Shen-Pool\/Getty Images)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-scaled-1.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-180x120.jpg 180w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-620x413-1.jpg 620w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-768x512-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-1536x1024-1.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-1231635235-2048x1365-1.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7248107\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) speaks as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies before the House Committee On Foreign Affairs March 10, 2021 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC (Ting Shen-Pool\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China is also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cecc.gov\/media-center\/press-releases\/xinjiang-chairs-urge-nba-players-to-end-endorsement-deals-with-chinese\">probing commercial relationships<\/a> between NBA players and Chinese sportswear companies Anta, Li-Ning and Peak over their alleged use of forced labor in cotton supply chains.<\/p>\n<p>Commission co-chairs Democratic Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley and Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Jim McGovern <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cecc.gov\/media-center\/press-releases\/xinjiang-chairs-urge-nba-players-to-end-endorsement-deals-with-chinese\">sent a letter request<\/a> to the National Basketball Players Association in June urging the players\u2019 union to \u201cpush these companies to end their use of Xinjiang cotton \u2026 [or] encourage players to end their endorsement deals with these companies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A group of 13 current NBA players have sponsorship deals with Anta and Li-Ning, according to Politico. The list includes Miami Heat forward <a href=\"https:\/\/bleacherreport.com\/articles\/2918820-heats-jimmy-butler-agrees-to-significant-multiyear-shoe-contract-with-li-ning\">Jimmy Butler<\/a>, Portland Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum and Golden State Warriors shooting guard <a href=\"https:\/\/bleacherreport.com\/articles\/2719124-klay-thompson-anta-reportedly-agree-to-10-year-80m-endorsement-contract\">Klay Thompson<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Dwayne Wade, retired Miami Heat player and part-owner of the Utah Jazz, signed a lifetime endorsement deal with Li-Ning in 2018, <a href=\"https:\/\/bleacherreport.com\/articles\/2786663-dwyane-wade-signs-lifetime-deal-with-li-ning-way-of-wade\">according<\/a> to Bleacher Report.<\/p>\n<p>Perry <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/newsletters\/politico-china-watcher\/2021\/07\/29\/lawmakers-nba-players-profiting-from-slave-labor-in-china-493767\">told Politico<\/a> that U.S. consumers should use their purchasing power as a means to persuade NBA players to terminate contracts with the Chinese companies. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/06\/28\/customs-and-border-protection-joe-biden-donald-trump-uyghur-xinjiang\/\">(RELATED: Ban On Goods Made With Forced Labor Slows Clothing Imports)<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you learn that NBA players are profiting off slave labor, don\u2019t buy their apparel,\u201d he said. \u201cIf their income from these endorsement deals start to dwindle, they\u2019ll get the point.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Xinjiang is a major hub for cotton production in China, and a number of Western companies are <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2020\/09\/16\/hm-xinjiang-concern-forced-labor-uighurs\/\">reliant on cotton supply chains<\/a> sourced in the region. China produces around one-quarter of global cotton supplies, and 84% of cotton produced in the country comes from Xinjiang, the BBC <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/business-50312010\">reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7248109\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" readability=\"35\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7248109\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-7248109\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-scaled-1.jpg\" alt=\"This photo taken on September 20, 2015 shows Chinese farmers picking cotton in the fields during the harvest season in Hami, in northwest China&#039;s Xinjiang region. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang urged reforms on September 20 of inefficient state-owned enterprises as his government tries to restore confidence in its slowing economy, state media reported on September 20.CHINA OUT AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read STR\/AFP via Getty Images)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-scaled-1.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/cdn01.dailycaller.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-180x120.jpg 180w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-620x413-1.jpg 620w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-768x512-1.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-1536x1024-1.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-489406294-2048x1365-1.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7248109\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">This photo taken on Sept. 20, 2015 shows Chinese farmers picking cotton in the fields during the harvest season in Hami, in northwest China\u2019s Xinjiang region (STR\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>China in recent years has detained up to 2 million Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minorities in re-education camps, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/uighur-muslim-detention-camps-xinjiang-china-7d682095-4dcc-4b7b-8368-09e73ae7178a.html\">according<\/a> to Axios. Both the U.S. government and human rights groups <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2020\/07\/29\/labor-rights-uighur-groups-cut-ties-xinjiang-forced-labor-brands-denial\/\">have raised concerns<\/a> about minorities in the Xinjiang region being sent to forced labor camps.<\/p>\n<p>The outgoing Trump administration in January <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/01\/13\/dhs-cbp-wro-xinjiang-cotton-tomato-forced-labor-uighurs\/\">banned imports of cotton<\/a> produced in Xinjiang in an attempt to eliminate forced labor from domestic supply chains. The Senate <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/07\/15\/uyghur-forced-labor-prevention-act-xinjiang-rubio-merkley\/\">passed<\/a> the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act in June that would further ban imports from Xinjiang, despite <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/04\/28\/apple-retail-groups-lobby-uyghur-forced-labor-act-china\/\">pressure from companies<\/a> such as Apple and Nike.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lawmakers are demanding NBA players terminate sponsorship contracts with Chinese companies whose cotton supply chains have been linked to forced labor in China\u2019s northwestern Xinjiang region.\u201cAmericans can\u2019t and shouldn\u2019t conduct &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-605879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605879","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=605879"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/605879\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=605879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=605879"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=605879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}