Dwyane Wade on Parkland victim buried in his jersey: 'This is why we will not just SHUT up and dribble!'
One of the 17 victims killed in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre in Parkland, Florida, on Feb. 14 was a big Dwyane Wade fan.
Joaquin Oliver, 17, loved the Miami Heat icon so much that his parents buried him wearing a Wade jersey.
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Wade heard about what happened and tweeted an emotional response on Sunday.
You’re about to make me cry this afternoon https://t.co/rWFsQcxlYc
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) February 25, 2018
On Monday, Wade expounded on his thoughts and feelings about Oliver and the shooting after practice in an interview with the Florida Sun-Sentinel.
“You hurt for the family, and if you’re able to get an opportunity to speak to them, you just try to hope that the time where he was alive, that you were able to bring some form of joy to his life and something memorable, a story that you guys can talk about.
“I don’t even know the word for it. Like I re-tweeted on Twitter, I said, ‘You’re going to make me cry.’ It’s emotional even thinking about that, that his parents felt that burying him in my jersey is something that he wanted. I take a lot of pride in what I’ve done in this state and what I’ve meant for the youth, so I appreciate that.”
Later Monday, Wade took his thoughts to Twitter, dedicating his season to the memory of Oliver.
It’s way BIGGER than basketball. We are the voices for the people that don’t get to be heard. Joaquin Oliver may you Rest In Peace and i dedicate my return and the rest of this Miami Heat season to you.
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) February 26, 2018
He also took a defiant tone in another tweet, channeling Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham, who famously told LeBron James to “shut up and dribble” rather than speak on social issues and has recently pushed a narrative of trying to undermine the movement of Stoneman Douglas students advocating for gun control measures in the wake of their classmates being murdered.
This is Joaquin Oliver. He was one of the 17 young lives that were lost tragically at Douglas HighSchool in Parkland. Joaquin was one of many that i heard was excited about my return to Miami and yesterday was buried in my jersey. This is why we will not just SHUT up and dribble! pic.twitter.com/X0tfTTao33
— DWade (@DwyaneWade) February 26, 2018
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