Cuban: White People Must 'Speak Up and Step In' Against Racism

DALLAS - White people should join in the fight against racism, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban says, as they “need to speak up” and "step in.''

“We, as white people, all know people who are racist,'' Cuban said on “Squawk Box” on Wednesday. "Maybe not overtly racist, but subtly racist. And when we see people act that way, we have to step in and say something. That’s when things start to change.”

"Just to be brutally honest, white people have got to have difficult conversations,'' Cuban says. "Right now, when we hear the term 'white privilege. we get very defensive. ... Is it hard? Is it painful? But that's what we have to do.''

Cuban, who has been at the progressive fore both in the battle against COVID-19 and in serving as a force in the community in the wake of the killing of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody, spoke on the "uncomfortable'' nature of such discussions.

“But the fact that it makes us uncomfortable gives us a reason to really want to start taking steps forward,” Cuban says. “We have to start to recognize that racism comes from us. It may just be one little baby step at a time that each one of us can take, but in aggregate, that is where real change occurs.”

Cuban who has spoken often on his idea of an "America 2.0,'' adds that he views these moments as a “generational opportunity” to create reforms and positive change.