Seth Udinski, FISM News

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NBA star Enes Kanter Freedom has been one of the loudest voices in sports in speaking out against the human rights abuses committed by the Communist Chinese government, specifically against Uyghur Muslims.

Early this week, Kanter Freedom condemned China’s hosting of the Olympics and said he wished other athletes would join him in protesting the games. He said on Monday,

I cannot just stay silent where my Muslim brothers and sisters are pretty much getting tortured and raped every day in concentration camps. I’ll be the one, I’ll be the bad guy. If you call it bad, I’ll be the bad guy. And just call it how it is. But I just wish that more athletes would join me. It is a lonely road. But I always say, you know, God is with me.

He encouraged athletes to use their “huge voice” to call out the atrocities that the Chinese government is committing against its people:

All the gold medals in the world that you can win is not more important than your morals, your principles, and your values — I feel like all the athletes need to stand up for something bigger…Athletes have a huge voice and they need to use it.

Contrary to Kanter Freedom’s words, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said on Thursday that athletes should rather silence their voice.

Pelosi encouraged U.S. Olympians to refrain from speaking out against China out of fear of repercussions. Many are baffled at the fact that Pelosi called the CCP “ruthless,” thereby admitting the truth of the problem that Kanter Freedom and others have highlighted, but that she also called athletes to stay silent nonetheless.

Pelosi said,

I wish the athletes well. I do not encourage them to speak out against the Chinese government there because I fear for their safety if they do.

She further stated that athletes at the Olympics are “there to compete” adding that they should not “risk incurring the anger of the Chinese government because they are ruthless.”