The history of the Communist Party of China is an unbroken string of gross human rights violations and oppression. The submission of US corporations to the will of the Chinese government is not only unacceptable but reprehensible. 

In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that many US-based companies have been putting their bottom line in front of any conception of human decency or belief in the principles upon which democracy is founded. The fear of getting banned in China and losing a sector of their profits outweighs all other considerations. 

One of the most recent examples of this is the NBA’s continuing support of the Chinese government and their outright censorship of their own employees. To see this on painstaking display, look no further than the controversy during early October due to the statements of Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey. Morey put out a statement in support of the 2019 Hong Kong pro-democracy protests, leading to the Chinese corporation Tencent canceling its streaming of the game. After this, Morey was forced by the NBA to retract his statement and publicly apologize. Popular sports commentator Stephen A. Smith also weighed in, making a bizarre statement that Morey’s actions were selfish and childish.

“You don’t just think about yourself before you act,” Smith said. “That’s what boys and girls do. That’s what children do.”

The fact that an organization in the United States with the amount of leverage that the NBA has is using its power to censor its employees from voicing their support for a democratic movement is abhorrent and should be viewed as such. 

Another corporation that has recently acted in this fashion is the video game corporation Blizzard entertainment, who Tencent has a 5% investment stake in. In early October, a winner of a Blizzard tournament named Ng Wai Chung made a pro-Hong Kong statement in an interview after winning $10,000 in the tournament. After this statement, Blizzard not only revoked his winnings but banned Chung from the tournaments. In addition to this, Blizzard even fired the  

Interviewers who had spoken to Chung.

Actions such as these are completely uncalled for, and Blizzard, as well as any other corporation, should be held responsible to them.

The Chinese Government’s actions against its own people do not deserve to be defended at all, let alone defended for the reason of greed. The events at Tiananmen Square in 1989 are the most obvious example of these actions. However, it is also very important to know that China continues to commit atrocities today. This includes but is not limited to: the organ harvesting of those of the Falun Gong faith, the detention of the Uighur Muslims and the brutal suppression of the 2019 Hong Kong protests. 

The American people must make their voices heard against these corporations. We must make it known that we do not compromise on human rights and liberty. I urge you: do not support what these corporations are doing. If corporations understand one thing, it’s money. We must show them through our purchases that we do not support these kinds of actions.