Lewis Hamilton has been a huge supporter of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement ever since it began in 2020. To show his support for the same, the Briton took a bold step to kneel before the 2020 Austrian GP. Many drivers supported the gesture and knelt with him. But six drivers did not kneel. In a 2020 exclusive interview with The Project, Hamilton expressed his thoughts on his compatriots who did not kneel back then.
Hamilton stated, “I think ultimately it is a personal choice. And what I do know is pretty much all of the ones that didn’t take the knee, but also some of the ones that did have not grown up or perhaps not been subject to it, or maybe not had friends who had it.”
The #44 driver highlighted how he has had friends who often experienced racial discrimination. In his childhood and later on in life, Hamilton himself has been a victim of discrimination. Thus, it is much more personal to him than to others who may not have faced it in real life.
According to CNN, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, Daniil Kvyat, Kimi Raikkonen, Antonio Giovinazzi, and Carlos Sainz were the six drivers who did not kneel at the Austrian GP in 2020. Verstappen and Leclerc reasoned on social media about why they were not taking the knee.
They stated that they support the cause against racism, but won’t take a knee as they felt such formal gestures can be controversial. Instead, “what matters are facts and behaviors in our daily life” to tackle and eradicate such behaviors from society.
Regardless, Hamilton clarified that he did not ask any drivers to take the knee. He mentioned how there was a huge build-up to the moment. While he wishes everyone knelt alongside him, the seven-time champion felt it should be their personal choice.
Lewis Hamilton was unsure about kneeling in support of BLM
While Lewis Hamilton cited that he did not ask his peers to take a knee with him, the Briton was himself undecided. In fact, the 39-year-old revealed that it was brought up to him. Moreover, he also highlighted his inspiration from the stories of Martin Luther King Jr. and NFL star Colin Kaepernick.
Back in 1965, Martin Luther King Jr. kneeled during a march. The civil rights leader was actively protesting in the fight for the right to vote and prayer. A picture of him kneeling went viral in 2017 and that led to several NFL players kneeling during the national anthem.
This saga had a preceding tale of Colin Kaepernick, who was the first athlete to kneel in 2016. This caused the NFL athlete to lose his job.
Although Hamilton got to know his side of the story during the 2017 US GP, he wasn’t able to support the cause. However, when the BLM movement started, Hamilton understood the significance and gravity of the social situation and made his stance clear.
