The Daily Show: Ears Edition - LeBron James - Developing Communities with the LeBron James Family Foundation

Episode Date: July 15, 2021

LeBron James discusses his plea for social activism at the ESPY Awards and talks about expanding educational resources via the LeBron James Family Foundation. Originally aired August 2016. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Join me for my new miniseries on the Art of Fairness. From New York to Tahiti will examine villains undone by their villainy. Monstrous, self-devaring egos and accounts of the extraordinary power of decency. Listen on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. My guest tonight is an NBA star. He's a superstar who plays for the 2016 championship winning Cleveland Cavaliers.

Please welcome LeBron James. I made him, I should have had chalk for you though, I think of that. I should have had chalk for you though, I think of that. You don't come out and done that. Welcome to the show and thank you so much for being. I'm happy to be here, man. Thank you. You look dapper in a suit. May I say that? You look... I borrow I've got a bone to pick with you, LeBron James. So I used to travel a lot doing stand-up all over the world, and because of that I chose shirts that didn't wrinkle easily and still look good on stage. So I used to wear almost exclusively

Lebron James T-Shirts, right? The lion. Okay. Because th, I I I I I I I I I I th. And th. And th, and th, and th, and th, and th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th, I th. I thine, I that, I that, I the the the theee theeean, I thean, I thean, I thooo-I thooo.the lion, because I'm from Africa obviously, so the lion. And then, and then I came to the US and I came to Cleveland just after you had left and I didn't know the whole story. I was just wearing the shirts and people would try to people on me so hard. People, I'm not if people would walk there, they're like, get you assholes, get out of here, you have, burn that shirt! Ah! And I was like, it was the most depressing thing. I was on stage, people booed me because I didn't know about like, you know? And I was like, the guy moved, but I gotta say, like, if ever someone has redeemed a shirt,

we were in Cleveland a few weeks ago for the Republican Convention, same shirts, same streets, and people are like, dope shirt, man! Dope shirt, man! So thank you, thank you for that. You send me on a more win, but welcome to the show. Oh man, appreciate it. Thanks for having to the show. You are, you are prolific. You are a legend, you are a future Hall of Famo.

You are everything and yet your life doesn't just revolve around basketball. I'm just going to go straight into this because it was probably one of the most amazing things I've seen. This is you and some of your friends at the Espos. Let's use this moment as a call to action for all professional athletes to educate ourselves. Explore these issues. Speak up. Use our influence and renounce all violence. And most importantly, go back to our communities.

Invest our time, our resources, help rebuild them, help strengthen them, help change them. We all have to do better. Powerful work. Powerful world. You're an NBA, You're an NBA superstar. Why do you feel you need to say something like that in a sports forum? It just comes natural to me.

And for me personally, I know where I come from. Growing up in inner city and Akron, Ohio, and I know the challenges that kids have. And for our society to become as great as it should be, I think it starts from the ground up and it starts in our communities, our own communities, going back into our communities, using our resources, using our knowledge. You know, anybody can lend money or anybody can go give an appearance.

But I think actually being there and them seeing you gives the kids hope, and, you know, without the kids, we, we, we, we, to, to and them seeing you gives them, it gives the kids hope. And you know, without the kids, we have no future. So it just comes natural to me and I understand what they go through. I walk the same streets as them. Yeah. I breathe the same air as those kids. I know what they go through, you know, growing up in tough situations.

So I think it's very important for all of us. th for th for th for th for th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's thi. It's thi. It's to to to to to to to to to be to be their thi. to to to to to too too too too too to to to to to to to to to to to to to their. their their their their their their their their their their their. It's their their. It's their. It's their. It's their. It's their. It's their. It's their. It's their. their. their. tomuuuuuu. theuuuuuuuuuuuu. toooooo too too too too too toe. toe. their that was really your first foray into this independently. You didn't have a way to get to school when you were a kid. You struggled getting to school, and so you started a program to help kids out. And now you start with third graders. Yeah. Why third graders specifically? Well, between myself and my office and everyone at my foundation, there was, we read upon it, and the statistics show that if kids get behind in the third grade, then it's a least amount of chance for them to graduate high school.

And so that's why we started in third grade. And yesterday was my LeBron James Family Foundation reunion where we welcome another third grade class into our program. And this is our sixth year now. Wow. Thank you. is our six year now. So, and thank you. This is our six year and it was unbelievable. If anybody has ever come to Ohio and been to Sandusky, Ohio and been to the great Cedar Point Amusement Park,

I brought 5,000 families yesterday to the amusement park for our reunion. Wow. I think it's fascinating that you say get involved and actively get involved. to the amusement park for our reunion. Wow. I think it's fascinating that you say get involved and actively get involved because you do something that is honestly the meanest and most amazing thing ever. You record messages for these kids to inspire them. So for those who don't know, LeBron James records messages and sends them out to these kids. So if they're not like at school, then you'll get a message from LeBron James. Do you not understand how heartbreaking that is? Like does it, what do you say in the call?

Well, if you don't, if you miss school, they will get a phone call and say, hey, listen, you're very important to your friends and your family and we need you in school. If you're not doing well in school I say well listen we need you to read the books we need you to stay in the classroom and listen to your teachers and there's also times because I know kids they were trying to miss a couple days of school to because they want the message message from Le Bro. James. So I'll show I'll the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message the message, listen, I know what you're trying now. I was a kid at one point too. This is like the best guidance counselor in life ever.

You better stop messing around. LeBron James is going to show up and that's just so, it's a beautiful story. You're also helping these kids, not just in third grade, but you're trying to get everyone through to a college education. Yeah it's funny because I partnered with the University of Akron a few years back and if our kids and the criteria is very attainable. If our kids can get from the third grade and graduate through high school then there's a college scholarship waiting on them. Wow. It's just a way full ride. Just waiting on that. I, uh, I have a hunch.

I have a hunch that you do that. Is that part of the guilt maybe that you have because, uh, no, I mean, there's probably kids out there come up to you and gone. Hey LeBron, I was going to go straight from high school to the MBA, but you shut that down, so now I've got to go to college. Is that why you did it? I've had kids say, well, Mr. James, you want us to go to college, but I read something about you, you didn't go. And I thought it was like well you know back then when I had an opportunity I was I'm like older than you college college they didn't have college when I came

out of high school. Oh man before before we go to a break one of the most innovative things that you do honestly blew me away is you're not just providing education for the kids you have a program where you help parents get a GED yeah absolutely And it's funny you say, And, you know, Trevor, it's funny you said, because as much as we want to hit home on the kids, what happens in their household means a lot as well. So, you know, I have all my kids that's looked after,

I have mentors that look after them, I have high school kids that look after them as well. But when they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they they go home, they have to have someone else they look up to as well. And sometimes, you know, you have a lot of parents that's not educated as well. So we've given an opportunity for parents in these households that didn't graduate high school to get an opportunity to graduate, get a GED as well, so they can feel like, you know, parents do they're their their their their their their their their their their their their, their, their, tha, tha, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, that, that, that, that, you're that, that, you that, you're that, you're tho, you have a lot, you have a lot, you have tho, you tho, you tho, you th. You th. You th.... You, you th.......... You, you th.... You, you have th.... You, you have th.. You, you have th. You, you have thi, you have thi, you're thi. And, you're thi. And, you're thi. And, you have a thrown. And, thrown. And, you're t ta. And, ta. And, ta. And, ta. And, ta. And, ta. And, you have tha. And, you have tha. kids do they work, they feel like, listen, we all empowered and it's pretty cool that we're able to do. It's an amazing initiative. You have managed to do something.

You know, it's funny, after you made that statement at the SPs with your fellow stars and close friends, I've seen you guys on Instagram partying without me. You, in essence, crossed a line that many people have been afraid to cross. So many athletes have always said, I don't want to get involved because it may taint my brand. I'm a sportsman. I can't get involved. You know, Michael Jordan famously never got involved. And yet a week after that, even Michael Jordan has now come out and started speaking. Do you feel that this is the grounds for, why did you feel it's important as an athlete to go, I know I'm making money, but I can still speak to issues. Yeah. I mean, first of all, I don't have

all the answers. I'm not a politician. Yeah I know what I'm about and I know what I represent and I know how many kids look up to me for guidance. And I feel like if there's something that's going on in our society that I feel very comfortable or very passionate about, then I speak upon it. No matter what anyone says about it, because it doesn't matter to me, I know I'm passionate about it, I'm knowledgeable about it, and I know how many kids to thi that I'm thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi thi the thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm not, I'm thi, I'm th th th th th thi, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm th th thi, I'm thi, I'm th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm thi, I'm not thi, I'm not thi, I'm not thi, I'm not thi, I'm not thin, I'm not thin. I'm not thin. th theean thean thean thean thean thean. I'm thi. I'm thi. I'm I'm passionate about, I'm knowledgeable about it, and I know how many kids that look up to me as a role model, as a leader, and some of them as a father, as well as a father figure. So it's what I do. If it's not up for other athletes, then I'm not giving, I'm not saying this and go do it. It's not pressure. But it's comfortable to me, it's comfortable to me. It's what, it's what, it's th. It's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's what, it's comfortable, it's what, it's comfortable, it's what, it's comfortable, it's what I, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's what I's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's what I's comfortable, it's what I's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's what I's what I's, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what's what, it's what's what's what, it's what's what's what, it's what's what, is's what's to, is's th. It's th. It's comfortable. It's comfortable. It's comfortable. It's comfortable. It's comfortable. It's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, as, as, as, as, as, as, it's, as, it's, it's, it's comfortable, it's comfortable, it's, it's not. to. to I do and you know I like to I like to give back. It is truly a magical thing to see because a lot of people don't understand as you said it is not fighting. It is just saying this is my experience this is my world seeing you on the court wearing shirts wearing like wearing bandanas wearing those it's just it's a powerful thing and I think I'm not the only one who says I appreciate it when I thank you. Thank the the the the one the one the one the one the one the one the one the one the one the one the the one the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the only the only the the the the only the only the only the only the only the only the only the only the only the only the only the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th is is things. things. things. things. things. things. things. things. things. I things. I th is tho. I th is the is th is th is th is th is th is the only one who says, I appreciate it when I go. LeBron James is part of the thing.

After the break, chatting more to LeBron James, not just about his work in the community, but his ambitions to take over the world. Lebron James, when we come back. The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Ears Edition. Subscribe to the Daily Show on YouTube for exclusive content and stream full episodes any time on Paramount Plus. Do nice guys really finish last? I'm Tim Harford, host of the Cautionary Tales podcast, and I'm exploring that very question. Join me for my new mini-series on the Art of Fairness.

From New York to Tahiti will examine villains undone by their villainy. Monstrous, self-devaring egos and accounts of the extraordinary power of decency. Listen on the IHart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. When 60 Minutes premiered in September 1968, there was nothing like it. This is 60 Minutes. It's a kind of a magazine for television. Very few have been given access to the treasures in our archives. But that's all about to change. Like none of this stuff gets looked at. That's what's incredible.

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