As much as I respect Drew Brees as a football player and a man (he’s one of my favorite QBs), this isn’t the first time he’s tried to stand firm in his over-the-top right-wing ideology and it isn’t the first time it has made him look foolish, insensitive and borderline racist.
Brees, who is a living legend in New Orleans and the NFL’s all-time passing yardage leader has political aspirations, but the way he has handled the current climate as the George Floyd protests continue and people await to hear if the other three officers will be charged may make Brees reconsider.
.@drewbrees is part of the problem. His take is disingenuous and wrong. The flag argument is an excuse to keep business as usual. Smh pic.twitter.com/23w9KGJdcs
— Rob Parker (@RobParkerFS1) June 3, 2020
The events that have transpired since Floyd was choked to death in broad daylight on a Minneapolis street by officer Derek Chauvin have caused many people previously and mistakenly critical of Colin Kaepernick’s silent protest to bring attention racist and social injustice, to reassess their stance.
Totally oblivious to his white privilege — the very thing that has led us to this place in America where cops kill Black and Brown people with impunity — Brees said this.
“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country,” Brees said.
Apart from the remark making “Drew Brees” a top trending Twitter topic today, his star receiver Michael Thomas wasn’t happy with Brees’ oblivious comment or the timing of it.
He don’t know no better.
— Michael Thomas (@Cantguardmike) June 3, 2020
Thomas later added: “We don’t care if you don’t agree and whoever else how about that.”
Brees has since provided a cleanup statement to Mike Triplett of ESPN.com.
“I love and respect my teammates and I stand right there with them in regards to fighting for racial equality and justice,” Brees said. “I also stand with my grandfathers who risked their lives for this country and countless other military men and women who do it on a daily basis.”
Has Drew Brees thought for one second about all the veterans like India Kager and Stephen Reed who ended up murdered by enemy fire by police at home? Anthony Hill? Kenneth Chamberlain? Walter Scott? pic.twitter.com/WG7lSZjO5k
— #StopCopCity (@ChuckModi1) June 3, 2020
Drew almost made it better, but doubling down on his support of his grandfather and countless other military men as an excuse to ignore the real purpose of Kapernick’s protest, makes him appear lost. — again. Brees was talking as if there weren’t thousands of Black people who served in the military with dignity and honor and protected these country’s borders as well.
The difference is, these Black heroes came home and were treated as subhumans instead of the patriots they were.
Peter Rosenberg, a Jewish radio personality and sports talk host basically ripped him a new one, so we don’t really have to because he says it all.
A response to Drew Brees https://t.co/cdsXOL1x8S pic.twitter.com/YoIC50UaBf
— Peter Rosenberg (@Rosenbergradio) June 3, 2020
