Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter has legally changed his name to Enes Kanter Freedom. The player is set to become a U.S. citizen on Monday.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania broke the news on Twitter Sunday, writing, “Kanter will be his middle name, Freedom his new last name.”
The name change arrives on the heels of Kanter voicing his opinion on various topics concerning social injustice. Back in October, Kanter called out Nike for what he deems the brand’s silence over ongoing injustices against minorities in China, namely the mostly Muslim Uyghur population.
During an October game against the Charlotte Hornets, the Celtics center wore a pair of Air Jordan 11 Lows scrawled with messaging including “made with slave labor” and “hypocrite Nike” and blood-like splatters. He continued his messaging on social media, posting a video to both his Instagram and Twitter accounts elaborating on his position. He argues that Nike supports minorities in America but doesn’t do enough in areas like China.
“Nike stands with Black Lives Matter, Nike stands with Stop Asian Hate, Nike stands with the Latino community, and Nike stands with the LGBTQ community. But when it comes to China, Nike remains silent,” Kanter said. “You do not address police brutality in China. You do not speak about discrimination against the LGBTQ. You do not say a word about the oppression of minorities in China…Who makes your shoes in China? Do you even know? There are so many forced labor factories in China. For instance, Uyghur forced labor. Modern day slavery is happening right now in China.”
