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NBA icon Charles Barkley wades into Bud Light-transgender debate with impassioned speech on stage in Lake Tahoe: ‘If you’re gay, bless you… if you have a problem with that, f*** you!’
- Barkley said in his playing days that he wasn’t bothered by gay teammates
- The Hall-of-Famer has been on the record in support of the LGBTQ+ community
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
NBA Hall-of-Famer Charles Barkley returned to Lake Tahoe and reiterated his support for the trans and gay communities while at a celebrity golf tournament.
Barkley, who made an impassioned speech last year at the same event, returned to repeat his message of support amidst a wave of anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment and legislation in the United States.
The ‘Inside the NBA’ analyst appeared to be slightly intoxicated as he took to the stage giving an impassioned message to the crowd as he took aim at bigots and those who were critics of companies, like Bud Light, for supporting the LGBTQ+ community.
‘I want y’all to drink this f***ing beer,’ Barkley said. ‘I want y’all to drink this f***ing beer. I got three cases of Bud Light.’
‘And I want to say this — if you’re gay, bless you. If you’re transgender, bless you. And, if you have a problem with that, f*** you!’
Charles Barkley took to the stage at an event in Lake Tahoe support the LGBTQ+ community
The Inside the NBA analyst has long been a supporter of gay marriage and gay rights
Barkley is in Lake Tahoe taking part in a celebrity golf tournament, the American Century
WARNING: CONTAINS EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
It was similar in both style and substance to the speech he made back in 2022, but the context of this situation has slightly changed.
Protests against Bud Light’s parent company Anheuser-Busch for partnering with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney were one of many examples of anti-trans demonstrations and rhetoric.
Anheuser-Busch reportedly recorded losses of $27billion as people protested earlier this year.
Additionally, laws in multiple states have been passed that either restrict or outright ban gender-confirmation treatments and surgeries for both younger patients and adults alike.
Barkley has been on record before professing his support for the LGBTQ+ community, saying back in 2011 that he was certain he played alongside gay teammates and that he never felt bothered by them.
‘First of all, society discriminates against gay people,’ Barkley said on a DC radio show back in 2011.
‘They always try to make it like jocks discriminate against gay people. I’ve been a big proponent of gay marriage for a long time, because as a black person, I can’t be in for any form of discrimination at all.’
Barkley is currently in the Lake Tahoe area taking part in the American Century Championship – an all-celebrity golf tournament.
