donald sterling
Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling sits on the sidelines wathcing his team play the New York Knicks in their NBA basketball game in Los Angeles in this February 11, 2009 file photo. NBA officials are reviewing an audio recording posted online of Sterling allegedly telling his girlfriend not to post photos of herself with black people and not to bring African-Americans to Clippers games, a league spokesman said on Saturday. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson Lucy Nicholson

NBA Clippers' Team Owner Donald Sterling made snide and racist remarks about black people while watching a live basketball game last April 9. In return, Sterling drew hate, lost sponsorships, and bad press quickly in a just a few weeks.

Donald Sterling, born April 26, 1934, is an American business tycoon who owned the Los Angeles Clippers franchise since 1981. To date, Sterling is the oldest tenured owner of an NBA team franchise which he holds for 33 seasons.

Recently, news spread out about Sterling making a racist remark in a conversation with V. Stiviano. On April 25, 2014, TMZ Sports released the audio recording of the alleged conversation. According to the audio, Sterling argued about an Instagram photo in which Stiviano posed with Magic Johnson. Sterling alledgedly says: "It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people." in a report from Huffington Post.

Many prominent figures condemned Sterling's recent outtake. Miami Heat's LeBron James commented "There's no room for Donald Sterling in the NBA -- there is no room for him," in a report from ESPN.
President Obama responded to Sterling's remarks "When ignorant folks want to advertise their ignorance, you don't really have to do anything, you just let them talk" and called it "incredibly offensive" in a report from TMZ sports.

Adding to Sterling's situation, various reports state that many corporate brands have started to terminate and suspend their relationship with the Clippers. These brands are Carmax, Virgin America, Mercedes-Benz, Corona, State Farm, Kia, Red Bull, and more. These brand owners share the same sentiments about Sterling's remarks. The companies say the comments made by the Clippers owner strongly conflict with their brand's ideals and respect for the customers.

Many people came out and told witness to Sterling's remarks attributed to him. During an interview on HuffPost Live Monday, Attorney Carl Douglas, one of the many people who knew Sterling before, recounted his experience with Sterling and how he proved the man to be with such a racist attitude.

In a recent game, the NBA Clippers team showed silent protest by wearing their red warm up shirts, black wristbands, armbands, and socks with their normal jerseys. The Miami Heat followed in the same fashion by doing the same. The Miami Heat showed solidarity with what the Clippers team players are going through.

Sterling's one alleged racist remark has created a huge backfire on him and his own team. NBA president Adam Silver continues to push for investigation of the accusations and act on the recent issue that is currently plaguing the entire league.