On Wednesday before the Philadelphia 76ers' opening night game vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder, singer Sevyn Streeter was supposed to sing the national anthem. However, Sixers representatives then prevented her from doing so, on account of her wearing a shirt that read "We Matter" in reference to the Black Lives Matter movement.
Was suppose to sing the anthem at @sixers & @okcthunder game but mins b4 @sixers said I couldn't because I was wearing a "We Matter" jersey pic.twitter.com/wjoJN3rq0r
— Sevyn (@sevyn) October 27, 2016
CBS Philly reported more on the circumstances surrounding the incident, and the Sixers' response:
Streeter says she was never given a dress code and the Sixers never asked to see her wardrobe beforehand. However, a source says Streeter, like other performers, sign an agreement that prohibit them from making political statements. The source says she refused alternatives given. And there was no issue if she wanted to wear the shirt in the stands as long as it wasn't while performing.
Source: Sevyn Streeter Claims Sixers Deny Her Anthem Performance Due To Her 'We Matter' Shirt « CBS Philly.
The Sixers released the following statement after the game:
"The Philadelphia 76ers organization encourages meaningful actions to drive social change. We use our games to bring people together, to build trust and to strengthen our communities. As we move from symbolic gestures to action, we will continue to leverage our platform to positively impact our community."
However, after several days of controversy, the Sixers released the following statement on Friday morning:
"We are sorry that this happened. After receiving feedback from our players, basketball operations staff and ownership group, we believe that the wrong decision was made, and Sevyn should have been welcomed to sing. We apologize to her, and in an effort to move the conversation forward, we have reached out to offer her an opportunity to return and perform at a game of her choice. We are waiting to hear back."
Streeter, 30, has written songs for several prominent R&B artists. There's been no word on what the Sixers plan to do going forward regarding the anthem. The NBA and NBPA held dialogue before the season regarding protests after athletes began sitting or kneeling during the national anthem, sparked by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Sixers players said Thursday they were thrown off by the incident and trying to figure out how next to approach the issue, which may have led to the team's public apology.
