*Tennis star Coco Gauff shared her candid thoughts on the current state of the United States during a press conference at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Feb. 15.
“Everything going on in the U.S., obviously I’m not really for it. I don’t think people should be dying in the streets just for existing. I don’t like what’s going on,” Gauff said, according to PEOPLE. Her comments referenced the recent fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens — Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti — both killed by federal agents in Minneapolis within weeks of each other.
Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was killed while using her Honda Pilot SUV to block ICE agents during an operation on a residential street. Pretti, an ICU nurse, was fatally shot after stepping in to help a woman who was being shoved by a federal officer. Though officials initially claimed he attempted to attack law enforcement, video evidence showed his weapon was holstered and that he was unarmed during the incident.
Pretti’s sister, Micayla, remembered him as kind, intelligent, and deeply passionate about helping others. She said that even in his final moments, he was acting to protect someone else. “All Alex ever wanted was to help someone — anyone. Even in his very last moments on this earth, he was simply trying to do just that,” Micayla said.
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Gauff made clear that her criticism of leadership does not diminish her love of country. “I think when you’re from any country, you don’t have to represent the entire values of what’s going on in the leadership. I think there’s a lot of people around there who believe in the things I believe in, and believe in diversity and equality,” she said, adding, “So, I’m hoping as the future progresses that we can get back to those values.”
Gauff also pushed back against the notion that athletes should stay silent on political issues. “I think the biggest thing I hate is when people say, ‘stay out of it’, when we’re being asked it. If you ask me, I’m going to give you my honest answer,” she said.
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