Vanessa Bryant has demonstrated more grace and strength in 2020 than many people will in their entire lives.
The 38-year-old mom has been through the unthinkable. Losing a spouse and a child at the same time is an unimaginable pain.
Yet Vanessa has proven time and again that she will stand up for her family. She was able to eulogize her husband and child with the world watching. Where many parents would crumble, she has been a pillar for her daughters.
In case you need any further proof of Vanessa's toughness, look no further than her recent comments. It all started when Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva called out another NBA star, LeBron James. The sheriff called on LeBron to match the $175,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of the person who shot two LA County deputies. Why LeBron? Because he, and many other celebrities, have been outspoken about police relations with the Black community.
The conversation about respect for life was upsetting to Vanessa, who was not shown those courtesies when Kobe and Gigi died. She's currently suing after the sheriff himself revealed eight deputies leaked photos of the helicopter crash site. She took to Instagram to share her frustrations.
Vanessa Bryant has some thoughts about the recent mention of LeBron James by Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
It all began when the sheriff spoke out about the shooting of two LA County sheriff's deputies in Compton on September 12. An unknown person walked up to the two officers in their patrol car and shot into the car before running off.
Both deputies will survive after undergoing surgeries. They are thankfully expected to recover fully, but of course, the incident has added to tensions surrounding the police as of late.
So where does LeBron come into this? LeBron shared some candid feelings on interactions between police and the Black community following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
"I know people get tired of hearing me say it, but we are scared as Black people in America," LeBron told the press following a Lakers game. "Black men, Black women, Black kids, we are terrified."
LeBron went on to explain that fear on the side of the Black community is a result of the use of excessive force by the police that we see far too often.
"You have no idea how that cop that day left the house," LeBron said. "You don't know if he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, you don't know if he had an argument at home with his significant other, you don't know if one of his kids said something to him and he left the house steaming. Or maybe he just left the house saying that, 'Today is going to be the end for one of these Black people.'"
He added: "That's what it feels like. That's what it feels like. It just hurts. It hurts."
On Monday, Villanueva leveled a challenge at LeBron to prove that his commitment to improving relations between the Black community and police is demonstrative of a respect for officers.
In an interview with KABC radio, the sheriff challenged LeBron to match the reward money collected. The county offered $100,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Two private donors added to the reward pot. One added $25,000 and another $50,000, for a total reward of $175,000.
"This challenge is to LeBron James. I want you to match that and double that reward," the sheriff said. "I know you care about law enforcement. You expressed a very interesting statement about your perspective on race relations and on officer-involved shootings and the impact that it has on the African American community."
He added: "And I appreciated that. But likewise, we need to appreciate that respect for life goes across professions, across races, creeds, and I'd like to see LeBron James step up to the plate and double that."
LeBron has yet to publicly respond to the challenge.
It's the use of the phrase "respect for life" that caused Vanessa to come to his defense. She didn't use her own words, and she shouldn't have to. Instead, she reposted some pointed observations from others on social media to her Instagram Stories.
Writer Elan Maree noted on Twitter: "How can he talk about trusting the system? His sheriff's dept. couldn't be trusted to secure Kobe Bryant's helicopter crash scene, his deputies took and shared graphic photos of crash victims. Vanessa Bryant is suing them."
"Sheriff Villanueva lied to Vanessa Bryant about protecting her family's privacy. His deputies took cellphone pictures of dead children and parents for pleasure. It's still too disturbing to comprehend," Elan noted.
Vanessa also posted another tweet from the writer's thread: "He shouldn't be challenging LeBron James to match a reward or 'to step up to the plate.' He couldn't even 'step up to the plate' and hold his deputies accountable for photographing dead children."
Vanessa also shared the screenshot of an article reminding folks of exactly what she's suing over. In the claim Vanessa's legal team filed on her behalf, heartbreaking details are revealed.
"In reality, however, no fewer than eight sheriff's deputies were at the scene snapping cell-phone photos of the dead children, parents, and coaches," the filing reads.
"As the department would later admit, there was no investigative purpose for deputies to take pictures at the crash site. Rather, the deputies took photos for their own personal purposes."
In addition to Vanessa's lawsuit, the union representing deputies in the LA County Sheriff's Department has sued Villanueva. They are asking that matters related to the internal investigation of these officers remain private. They are concerned about the safety of the officers, should their names be released.
Vanessa then posted photos of all the people who died in the crash. Kobe and Gianna were two of nine people killed in the crash. Also lost were John Altobelli, Keri Altobelli, and Alyssa Altobelli, Christina Mauser, Sarah Chester and Payton Chester, and pilot Ara Zobayan.
To conclude her posts, Vanessa shared her prayers for the recovery of the two sheriff's deputies. It shows that while Vanessa has personal gripes, she isn't anti-police, as some will surely try to paint her.
"Not all deputies are bad apples," she wrote. "Prayers for the 2 deputies that were shot."
