Etan Thomas

Former SU basketball star Etan Thomas, pictured here at a news conference after a meeting with National Basketball Association owners on Nov. 10, 2011, posted on Facebook over the weekend about being denied a seat on a train that has gone viral.

(AP)

Former Syracuse basketball star Etan Thomas took to social media over the weekend to pass along a story about being denied a seat on a train.

Thomas, a 6-foot-10 center who spent most of his NBA career with the Washington Wizards, claimed he asked to sit next to a white woman on a train, who declined him the seat next to her.

When another man, who is white, sat down next to the woman a couple minutes later, Thomas wondered if race was the reason and confronted the woman about it.

He took a picture of the woman and the man who sat down next to her and posted a message on his Facebook and Twitter pages.

Shout out to the lady who didn't want me to sit next to her on the train but quickly moved her stuff when he asked pic.twitter.com/ApeQWXjD7h — Etan Thomas (@etanthomas36) May 20, 2016

"I ask this lady if I could sit next to her (very politely and I soften my voice as to not frighten her) and she says someone is sitting here," Thomas wrote. "So I go to the next seat. Now, less than 2 mins later a man (who happens to be white) asks if he can sit there and she says why sure let me move my stuff."

"I ask ummmmm did you just not want ME to sit next to you? Were you scared? Not comfortable with a Black Man sitting next to you? And she says lol smh don't pull the race card stuff with me I dated a Black guy in college."

The man who ended up taking the seat, unaware of the earlier incident between Thomas and the woman, offered to get up and give Thomas the seat. Thomas responded by saying he was going to post on Facebook about it. He also relayed a message of how the conductor of the train recognized him when the woman complained about her photo being taken by Thomas.

"I said no need I'mma just take this pic and make a Facebook post about it. So then she says did you just take a pic of me? Well I'm going to tell the conductor that you're over here illegally taking pics of ppl without their consent. So the conductor came up and said hey Etan Thomas love what you're doing in the community loved you with the Wizards big 'Cuse fan man the Knicks sure could use you .... And I said was there something you wanted to tell my man? And she rolled her eyes smh some ppl I tell ya."

Thomas' Facebook post on the incident went viral over the weekend, with over 116,000 'likes', 35,000 shares and over 4,700 comments.

Ok so I'm getting on the train and there are no open seats and I ask this lady if I could sit next to her (very politely... Posted by Etan Thomas on Friday, May 20, 2016

Thomas, who retired from the NBA after the 2011 season, is not shy about sharing his opinion.

He is a noted poet and social activist who has been outspoken about the war in Iraq and Hurricane Katrina, among other issues.

Thomas wrote a book in 2012 titled "Fatherhood: Rising to the Ultimate Challenge," that contains essays from athletes, actors, and politicians about the challenges and responsibilities and challeges of being a dad.



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