NAN’s the Rev. Al Sharpton (image from nationalactionnetwork.net)
Rev. Al Sharpton, Founder and President of the National Action Network (NAN), issued the following response to PayPal’s announcement that it would end its sponsorship of the Phoenix Suns after the 2022-23 NBA season. The company’s decision comes days after a blistering NBA report that found Sarver created a culture of bigotry, sexism, and abuse, and less than a month after Rev. Sharpton urged PayPal CEO Dan Schulman to end its partnership with Sarver. Today, Rev. Sharpton urged PayPal and other corporate sponsors to call on Sarver’s immediate removal as owner of the Suns.
“As I said in my letter to PayPal’s CEO Dan Schulman last month, the company has a moral obligation to end its relationship with Robert Sarver. I commend Mr. Schulman for taking this step, but more can and must be done because justice delayed is simply justice denied. All corporate sponsors have a morality clause in their contracts that allows them to move quickly to terminate a relationship under circumstances such as these. There is no need to wait a year. Sarver must step away immediately. I call on PayPal as well as the Suns’ other corporate sponsors including Footprint, Verizon, Coca Cola, and Gatorade, among others, to demand Sarver’s immediate removal before the season starts in one month.”