Johnson: Family ‘did everything right’ before COVID-19 diagnosis

INDIANAPOLIS — Jimmie Johnson and his family took every precaution to avoid the coronavirus.

They washed their hands frequently, diligently followed the face-mask guidelines and even left their home in Charlotte, North Carolina, for the less densely populated Aspen, Colorado.

And yet both Johnson and his wife still tested positive for the virus this week — knocking the seven-time NASCAR champion out of what was expected to be his final Brickyard 400.

Johnson is the first NASCAR driver to test positive for the virus that causes COVID-19, and it will end his streak of 663 consecutive Cup starts. It’s also temporarily disrupting his family life as he and wife, Chani, attempt to quarantine while still raising their two daughters. Both girls tested negative, Johnson said.

now.

He’s coaching the Orlando Magic.

No, he’s not coaching them on how to become NBA champions; he’s coaching them on how to become social justice warriors.

And like all great coaches, Meade knows the most important analytic of them all:

One person, one vote. These four words are the No. 1 coaching directive he plans to repeatedly drill into his new team.

“Voting is the most important thing you can do as an American,” says Meade, who recently spoke to the entire Magic organization via a Zoom videoconference. “When you vote, you have as much power as Bill Gates or Donald Trump.”

Which is why he is helping the Magic unveil their new voting campaign: “Get off the bench and in the game.”

Says Orlando Magic coach Steve Clifford: “When Desmond Meade spoke to our team, he zeroed in on voting, which speaks directly to the question that I think most of us have at this time: What can I do to help? Voting is obviously a very important part of that for everybody.”

In the wake of the George Floyd killing and the massive protests that followed, the Magic as a franchise and the NBA as a league promised to use the power and prestige of their sport to fight for racial justice.

So far, so good.

The Magic already have started that fight locally even before the entire NBA converges on Central Florida later this month. Magic CEO Alex Martins has begun lobbying local politicians and is forming a social justice task force made up of Magic employees. The players are making public-service announcements and formulating a team-wide plan for the league re-start. Clifford has jumped into the fray with both feet and is connecting and networking at the local level.

The Magic coach has become involved with Meade’s Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, he met with Orange County sheriff John Mina, he’s attended a taskforce meeting on police reform and he’s met with an organization in the Parramore area known as “Let Your Voice Be Heard.”

“You have to figure out where you’re at as a person,” Clifford says. “For me right now, this is not a time to be neutral. … I’m probably like a lot of people, where there have been things that have bothered me in the past but — in self-reflection looking back — I never did a lot to make it any better. I’m determined now to be part of that positive change.”

Meade, a former drug addict and convicted felon who fought off his personal demons to become one of the most respected activists in the world, is glad to have the Magic and the NBA beside him in his fight.

Meade, much like the late, great Nelson Mandela, believes sports has the unique ability to unify and galvanize a community for a common cause. Mandela once said, “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than government in breaking down racial barriers.”

Says Meade: “Sports can bring people like very few other things can, and it brings people together from all different walks of life. When you look out at sports fans, you are seeing a cornucopia of different people from different races and ethnicities; you’re seeing people from different economic backgrounds; you’re seeing people of varying political and religious beliefs.

“And here’s the beautiful thing. You know what sports does with all of those different people? It brings them all together because of the love for their team. It actually makes people agree on something and cheer for something that’s good. We need more of that in this country right now.”

We sure do.

We sure as hell do.

It’s time to elect people who will bring us together, not tear us apart.

It’s time to realize a democracy in which everybody participates is a better, more vibrant democracy.

It’s time for all of us to become part of the political process instead of part of the political problem.

“It’s time,” Meade says, “for everybody to get off the bench and in the game.”

You can do exactly that by going to RegisterToVoteFlorida.Gov.