Jerry Boutsiele celebrated his first two caps for the French team in November 2020. -

Iroz Gaizka / AFP

He is one of the best pivots in the French championship, selected for the Blues by Vincent Collet for the next international window in February.

But we didn't call Jerry Boutsiele to cause rebounds and take information in the racket.

Asked by his club to carry an anti-racist campaign inspired by NBA players in the summer, the boy of Congolese origin, the only one of his siblings born in France, did not hesitate to raise the glove, dubbed by the Limougeaud locker room .

He details the genesis of the project and the reasons for its commitment alongside the Human Rights League, which wished to join forces with the CSP Limoges to lead this fight.

What triggered your desire to get involved in the anti-racism fight?

I clearly had a revelation when I saw NBA players manifest their position as they did in the Orlando bubble.

I never thought they could go so far as to boycott a game.

Carrying a slogan, passing messages, it's one thing, but going against the institution to show that it cannot last any longer after the police shootings on Jacob Blake, it's very strong.

All it took was one team to say stop for all to follow.

It's inspiring, of course.

So when the CSP looked for a way to be active on these issues, I wanted to be.

Are the Black Lives Matter movement or police violence in France part of the conversations in the Limoges locker room?

It has become a daily subject of discussion between us, including with the American players who are at the club.

Whenever there is a news item over there, or at the time of police violence in France, we talk about it in the locker room.

There are similarities between our two countries on the issue of racism, it goes beyond the domain of sport.

No one hesitated for a second when we decided to embark on this project.

It is a source of pride that Limoges is a pioneer on these issues.

#CSPLDH |

The Limoges CSP and the League of Human Rights, together against racism



🤝 The League of Human Rights and the Limoges CSP have announced a historic and lasting partnership.



To read the full article: https://t.co/YOpUTXxpDj #NoRacism ✊🏻✊🏽✊🏿 pic.twitter.com/y8QhOPLws0

- Limoges CSP (@limogescsp) January 14, 2021

You played soccer until you were 17 before you came to basketball late.

What is your personal experience with racism?

It was much more common in football, but it also happened to me in basketball halls when I started.

In the hopeful championship, we play with friends, in small rooms, with few people in the stands.

So obviously we hear things… "Bamboula you should catch balloons like you catch bananas".

The first time I heard that, I was stunned.

I could easily have gone to settle his account given my stature, but the coach told me to go to the side for a few moments to calm down.

It was not worth responding to these people like that, there is some educational work to be done before.

How will the campaign you intend to carry out unfold?

With the club, we have planned several interventions in the region, especially with young people, in schools.

Starting with a very simple question: "what is racism for you?"

I imagine that we will be entitled to lots of clichés, but we will have to dismantle them, and explain that racism has no place by talking about what we know best, sport, where so many cultures and of different origins.

Today it's easier to spread your bitterness by hiding behind a screen, when you can do exactly the opposite and get involved for a just cause.

Will there also be actions on the sports field?

We are discussing a number of things, depending on the evolution of the health crisis.

What is certain is that the club has planned a special jersey for the occasion, which will be worn against Asvel and Levallois in March.

We will go from black to white, with slogans instead of our names, on the model of what the NBA did last summer.

There are a number of messages to choose from.

“How many more deaths?

"Enough", "stop violence", things like that.

I haven't chosen mine yet.

Diandra Tchatchouang, Olivier Dacourt, or Thierry Dusautoir joined you in the role of ambassador?

Do you hope to inspire beyond CSP Limoges and Pro A?

Our goal is obviously for this campaign to have a snowball effect and for the other French Pro A clubs to follow, to begin with.

The Federation and the League support us and are committed to our side, it's a good start.

We are not going to defeat this scourge alone, but we are never too committed when it comes to denouncing racism and police violence.

It fell on me, but it could have been any of my teammates.

Everyone really feels concerned.

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  • Racism

  • Basketball

  • Sport

  • CSP Limoges