Former Ohio State standout says he’s done with being a racist twitter troll.
Former Ohio State defensive lineman Nick Bosa, who is expected to be among the top two picks in the upcoming NFL Draft, with has been running off at the mouth for some time now. And though everyone has the right to express their opinion as they see fit, there may be a social price to pay whenever said opinions are in line with demagoguery and racial trolling.
Ever since the current president has been in office disguising white nationalism as patriotism, there have been a slew of Americans in the public and private sectors who have been emboldened to reveal their true feelings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cCUYxItOXo
Though we’re told otherwise, these are never simply a matter of “telling it like it is” and “shooting from the hip”. These are clear earmarks of a racist mind.
On Tuesday it was announced that Bosa, who is on record as being anti-Kaepernick, anti-Black Panther and anti-Beyonce, had deleted his tweets of shade against some cultural pillars of black thought over the last three years.
Though he used to be a rabid tweeter, he has decided to pull back from the social media platform. However, he’s not doing it because it’s the right thing to do or because he’s had a change of heart.
“I had to. There is a chance I might end up in San Francisco,” Bosa told Kevin Van Valkenburg for an ESPN the Magazine feature posted online Tuesday.
His account, @nbasmallerbear, first started spouting ridiculousness disguised as opinion when he took to Twitter and drew the ire of the Bee Hive when he said “Beyoncé’s music is complete trash,” back in 2016.
He also said “[Colin] Kaepernick is a clown” in 2016, and “Black panther worst marvel movie of all time” in 2018, and tweets in support of President Donald Trump.
Since that time all the tweets have been deleted.
However, when you add up his negative comments about black cultural representatives, as well as his support for a president that some say is the most racist in recent history, it’s easy to see how someone would “mistake” Bosa for being a racist.
Nick, younger brother of standout San Diego Charger Joey Bosa, hasn’t played since last September after suffering a groin injury.
He ultimately withdrew from school and moved to Los Angeles with his brother.
There’s an old adage, ”Freedom of speech, just watch what you say.”
As we’ve learned from the plight of Colin Kaepernick and many others, the “shut up and play” admonishments of those in the mainstream rarely are expanded to include athletes and individuals with viewpoints that are in line with those of the mainstream.
It is only when the mainstream is taken to task that speech is policed. Though Bosa has said he’s given up his Twitter-trolling ways, only time will tell if he’s done.
Meanwhile, he will be entering a league where 70 percent of the players are African-American.
However, the fact that many of the team owners have expressed views similar to his during the ire that surrounded Colin Kaepernick may put a battery in his back once he gets in the league. Only time will tell.
One thing is clear, no one is safe between the lines. He’s setting himself up for a rookie year of pain if he doesn’t take care to watch his tongue.
And, if he does start that stuff up again, it will be interesting to see how the status quo and the general public reacts to what he has to say while he’s in the NFL spewing racially and culturally insensitive drivel disguised as free speech.
