Former UConn stars are speaking up in the wake of the violence in Minnesota.<\/p>\n
Breanna Stewart, Ray Allen and Liam McNeeley have all lent their voices, both on the court and on social media.<\/p>\n
Stewart held up a sign that read \u2018Abolish Ice\u2019 ahead of her game in Unrivaled on Sunday in Miami.<\/p>\n
The gesture came a day after 37-year-old protester Alex Pretti was shot multiple times and killed<\/a> during protests in Minneapolis. Pretti was the second U.S. citizen to be killed by federal forces<\/a> in the city this month, after Renee Good was shot on Jan. 7.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re so fueled by hate right now instead of love,\u201d Stewart, a four-time NCAA champion at UConn, told reporters<\/a>. \u201cSo I wanted to have a simple message of \u2018Abolish ICE,\u2019 which means having policies to uplift families and communities instead of fueling fear and violence. I think that when human lives are at stake, it\u2019s bigger than everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s scary. You see it on social media, you see it splitting up families and dissecting communities and kids are being involved. It\u2019s the worst in all ways,\u201d Stewart said. \u201cAnd to be married to (Spanish basketball star) Marta\u00a0<\/a>\u2026 we\u2019re working to get her citizenship, and she is a legal permanent resident and all of that. But it seems like it doesn\u2019t matter. And I think that that\u2019s why these policies need to be put in place, that reform needs to happen, because it doesn\u2019t seem to be affecting the right people. It\u2019s not helping anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n Stewart also posted a photo of herself with the sign on Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a mother, nothing scares me more than seeing families torn apart, children traumatized, and parents living in fear of losing their loved ones,\u201d she wrote in the caption. \u201cOur communities deserve better. They deserve safety, dignity, and compassion. Not trauma and division. Saying Abolish ICE is about advocating for policies that uplift families and strengthen communities, instead of fueling fear and violence.\u201d<\/p>\n UConn men\u2019s basketball legend and Hall of Famer Ray Allen also took to Instagram to speak out<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are at a reflection point in America. This country was built on violence\u2014-and for Black people, that violence has never been theoretical,\u201d Allen wrote in part. \u201cFor centuries, we have been terrorized, killed, raped, exploited, and systematically disenfranchised, then told that if something bad happened to us, we must have been the agitator never for once thinking an injustice took place. Honestly look at what has been unfolding over the past year.<\/p>\n \u201cSilence is not neutrality. If you stay quiet while others are vilified, targeted, or killed, do not be surprised when your own rights are questioned. Justice is not selective. Freedom is not conditional. And history does not forgive indifference. This is the moment to speak\u2014 before there\u2019s no one left to do it for you.\u201d<\/p>\n Former UConn men\u2019s star Liam McNeeley<\/a>, in his rookie season in the NBA with the Charlotte Hornets, also took to social media, sharing a Bible verse.<\/p>\n \u201cSpeak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Proverbs 31:8,\u201d McNeeley posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n Tribune News services contributed to this report.<\/p>\n \t\t\t