NFL superstar and New Orleans legend Drew Brees ignited a firestorm of controversy when he said he opposes kneeling during the national anthem, inciting an onslaught of bare-knuckled criticism from current and former athletes.
Without saying his name, Brees is referencing exiled quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who began sitting and then started kneeling during the playing of the national anthem in 2016 to protest police brutality and judicial injustice. Kaep never played in the NFL again.
“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country,” Brees said in an interview with Yahoo.com. “Let me just tell what I see or what I feel when the national anthem is played and when I look at the flag of the United States.”
Brees, 41, the Super Bowl-winning quarterback for the New Orleans Saints, began to wax poetic about his grandfathers fighting in wars — failing to mention the Black men who fought alongside them yet came home to face the same injustices, police brutality, lynchings and indignities many experience today.
Highlight: @readdanwrite asks @drewbrees what the star NFL quarterback thinks about "players kneeling again when the NFL season starts."@drewbrees: “I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country.”
Full exchange: pic.twitter.com/MpCkFyOMed
— Yahoo Finance (@YahooFinance) June 3, 2020
Brees’ inflammatory statements never mentioned the current string of Black killings by police in Minneapolis, Louisville, Kentucky, or Brunswick, Georgia. Scores of athletes expressed their righteous indignation at Brees comments, accusing him of being tone-deaf and unsympathetic to Black victims of incessant police abuse. Stephen Jackson, LeBron James, Richard Sherman and other athletes tore into Brees on social media.
Even White NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers blasted Brees without referencing him. Take a look.
Stephen Jackson calls out Drew Brees *NSFW* @brgridiron
(via @DaTrillStak5) pic.twitter.com/vT6tRALMwq
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 3, 2020
men who fought as well for this country. I asked him question about it and thank him all the time for his commitement. He never found Kap peaceful protest offensive because he and I both know what’s right is right and what’s wrong is wrong! God bless you. 🙏🏾✊🏾👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 3, 2020
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