Shut Up and Dribble...Please?

In 2018, Laura Ingraham caused an uproar across America after she lashed out at cultural and basketball icon LeBron James.  For the sake of brevity, I will spare you of the details, but if you care to find out more I've linked the original story where she told James to "shut up and dribble."  Most everyone has a stance on this issue one way or the other, but is either party truly in the wrong?

Lebron's Side

Lebron James, shown in uniform for the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA

https://www.nba.com/news/lakers-surging-behind-lebron-james

In this particular instance, Lebron was under fire because he had touched on his own political opinions as well as his opinion on Donald Trump, who was president at the time, in an interview with ESPN.  All of this is perfectly fine in the eyes of the First Amendment.  He was simply speaking his mind, which is protected under the First Amendment.  He made no actions, or expressive actions.  All he did was talk about his own opinions, which is covered under the First Amendment.  Legally speaking, James did nothing wrong.  The outrage came in response to this because a good amount of the general public believes that LeBron shouldn't use his platform to spread political opinions when that isn't what he's paid to do.

Ingraham's Side

Ingraham at the 2016 RNC with Fox News

https://time.com/5223600/laura-ingraham-vacation/

Fox News' Laura Ingraham was a part of the crowd who believed that LeBron should keep his opinions to himself.  Her "shut up and dribble" comment was not well received, but she was within her rights to say it.  She is attempting to silence James, but because she isn't a part of the government it is fully legal in the scope of the First Amendment.

My Thoughts

While I am neither endorsing nor condemning the political ideologies made public by either of these two parties, I believe that people should have the right to speak their mind on any political topic, no matter what their occupation or public status.  I think that acceptance of opposing viewpoints is the most important issue for our country moving forward into the new era of media and politics, and that both sides should be able to express their ideas in a peaceful manner.  I think that LeBron James should be applauded for using his platform to speak out politically during a time of unrest.  I also think that Laura Ingraham should be fully allowed to speak out against James' opinions, whether on television or otherwise, but attempting to silence his opinions is what took her down in this particular instance.