Michael Rapaport slams Sue Bird for staying mum on Israel despite being Jewish

Appearing on the "Sage Steele Show" in July, actor Michael Rapaport slammed WNBA legend Sue Bird for not "saying sh*t" about the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict despite her being Jewish. Visibly frustrated, Rapaport called out Bird and her fiancée, former U.S. soccer star Megan Rapinoe, for allegedly not using their voice to extend support and claimed they usually speak about every other matter.

"I was like, come on, man, not one of you guys are going to say sh*t? And then Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird, who's Jewish, I'm like, you're not going to say sh*t," Rapaport said. "You guys say sh*t about everything, and I backed you up, you're not saying anything about anything?"

Sue Bird is widely recognized as one of the greatest Jewish athletes ever. Though she was born in the U.S., Bird holds both American and Israeli citizenship, and her dad is an Ashkenazi Jew with Russian Jewish ancestry.

Sue Bird applauded POTUS Joe Biden's plea in Israel-Palestine conflict

In a now-deleted Instagram post, Sue Bird had previously actively spoken for people's welfare in the Middle East crisis when the conflict was reignited in October 2023.

In the post, Bird shed light on the matter and extended a thankful message to POTUS Joe Biden on the release of two American and two Israeli civilians who were under Hamas captivity. The message in the post made rounds on the internet under the campaign #NoHostageLeftBehind.

“Dear President Biden, We are heartened by Friday’s release of the two American hostages, Judith Raanan and her daughter Natalie Raanan and by today’s release of two Israelis, Nurit Cooper and Yocheved Lifshitz, whose husbands remain in captivity,” Bird wrote on her IG story.

"Thank you for your unshakable moral conviction, leadership, and support for the Jewish people, who have been terrorized by Hamas since the group’s founding over 35 years ago, and for Palestinians, who have also been terrorized, oppressed, and victimized by Hamas for the last 17 years that the group has been governing Gaza.”

Sue Bird is a keen activist on various matters of equality and has also won many humanitarian awards, including the Moyer Foundation Award for helping children and the Anti-Defamation League Connecticut’s Changemaker Award.

She has often used her platform to uplift the voices of many affected by a myriad of issues, including equality, health and wellness, Black Lives and bringing opportunities to girls and marginalized people.