The National Basketball Association has postponed three matches after players from the Milwaukee Bucks boycotted their game against the Orlando Magic in protest of the police shooting of black man Jacob Blake.
The Bucks' move triggered similar player protests against racial injustice in other sports across the United States on Wednesday.
The action by the Wisconsin-based Bucks follows deadly nights of protests in the city of Kenosha, also in Wisconsin, after Mr Blake, 29, was shot by officers several times in the back while his children watched.
In addition to Wednesday's Bucks-Magic game, the Houston Rockets-Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers-Portland Trail Blazers matches were also postponed and will be rescheduled, the NBA said.
Three women's NBA matches were also suspended on Wednesday.
After failing to show on the court, Bucks players held an impromptu media conference, with players wearing t-shirts adorned with 'Black Lives Matter' and other anti-racism slogans.
“Despite the overwhelming plea for change, there has been no action. So our focus today cannot be on basketball,” player Sterling Brown said.
The players called on the Wisconsin state legislature to reconvene to pass meaningful measures to address issues of police accountability, brutality and criminal justice reform.
“When we take the court and represent Milwaukee and Wisconsin, we are expected to play at a high level, give maximum effort and hold each other accountable. We hold ourselves to that standard, and in this moment, we are demanding the same from lawmakers and law enforcement,” Bucks player George Hill said.
After delivering their statement, the playing group left the press conference, choosing not to answer reporters’ questions.
The Magic, who trail the Bucks 3-1 in their best-of-seven playoffs series, left the court when it was clear their opponents were not going to play.
Beyonce's song "Freedom" rang out in the empty arena in Orlando as the clock counting down to the start of the game ran out.
The boycott is only the second in the NBA’s history, following a 1961 match where Boston Celtic players sat out in protest of segregation.
It comes four years to the day since NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick chose to sit during the national anthem in a pre-season game, igniting a wider protest movement in sport against racial injustice.
Solidarity
Other players across the NBA responded to the boycott with message of support.
Media outlets reported players from the Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets had also chosen to boycott their games.
“F*** THIS MAN!!!! WE DEMAND CHANGE. SICK OF IT,” Los Angeles Lakers player LeBron James tweeted.
Protests against racial injustice and police brutality have been visibly present since the NBA restarted its season last month in a bio-secure bubble in Orlando.
The courts have 'Black Lives Matter' painted on them and many players are wearing jerseys with social justice slogans on them.
But the Bucks' boycott is by far the most dramatic move by a team to date.
“Throughout the season restart, our players have been unwavering in their demands for systemic justice,” Players Association Executive Director Michele Roberts said.
“The players have, once again, made it clear – they will not be silent on this issue.”
Los Angeles Clippers coach Doc Rivers, who is African American, expressed his own despair in a powerful statement earlier in the day.
“We’re the ones getting killed, we’re the ones getting shot,” he told reporters.“It’s amazing, why we keep loving this country, and this country does not love us back.”
Former player and current television pundit Kenny Smith joined players by walking off the set of the Inside The NBA pre-match television show.
“As a black man, as a former player, I think it’s best for me to support the players and just not be here tonight,” he said before disconnecting his microphone.
Other public figures, including former President Barack Obama and Senator Bernie Sanders, expressed support for the players.
The protests have also spilled over to other sports across the country.
Major League Baseball teams the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds opted not to play their game Wednesday, while five Major League Soccer matches were suspended in protest.
“Given the pain in the communities of Wisconsin and beyond following the shooting of Jacob Blake, we respect the decisions of a number of players not to play tonight,” MLB said in a statement.
Japanese-Haitian tennis player Naomi Osaka also announced a boycott of a planned match in solidarity.
"Watching the continued genocide of Black people at the hand of the police is honestly making me sick to my stomach," she wrote in a post uploaded to social media.
"I'm extremely tired of having this same conversation over and over again. When will it ever be enough?"
Additional reporting: Reuters
