AOC explained why NBA players' protest of the police shooting of Jacob Blake was a strike rather than a boycott, and why the distinction matters

• The Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court on Wednesday against the Orlando Magic in protest of the police shooting of Jacob Blake.
• The rest of the teams scheduled to play that day soon followed, with some players referring to their collective action as a "boycott."
• On Twitter, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez explained that the players' action was a strike, as they were withholding their labor, rather than their dollars.

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez gave a helpful lesson in labor terminology while expressing her support for the NBA and WNBA players protesting the police shooting of Jacob Blake.

On Wednesday, the Milwaukee Bucks refused to take the court for their game against the Orlando Magic. They were soon joined by the rest of the teams scheduled to play that day, and suddenly, NBA playoff basketball was off for the day.

Some players, including LeBron James, had referred to their protest as their "boycotting" of the day's games, with those reporting on the quickly evolving protest using the term as well.

—Lakers Outsiders (@LakersOutsiders) August 26, 2020

The term was eventually used as a headline for the sports section of the New York Times, with the sub-hed "Athletes take social justice to a new level by refusing to play."

—NYT Sports (@NYTSports) August 27, 2020

On Twitter, many users pointed out that the proper term to use would not be a boycott, but rather a strike — specifically, a "wildcat" strike, as the decision to withhold labor was taken without the approval of the players association.

—Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 27, 2020

While the distinction between the two terms might not seem of huge importance, as Ocasio-Cortez explained, the difference came from where the players were deriving their power — by withholding their labor.

Even though the players had called their action a "boycott" — possibly because the act of striking is prohibited in the players' collective bargaining agreement with the league — the reality of their action was clear.

—Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 27, 2020

By the follwing day, the players' protest had already moved towards resolution, with players agreeing to restart the postseason. Though Thursday's games were also pushed back, play could resume as soon as this weekend.

But even with the players taking the court again, their action on Wednesday showed that they were ready to take drastic action, regardless of whether or not it was CBA-approved.

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