The Dallas Cowboys have proved yet again that nothing will stop the money train or self-interests. Barely 24 hours after multiple mass shootings on July 4th, “America’s Team” announced a partnership with the gun-themed Black Rifle Coffee Company via Twitter. The company’s signature blends include “Silencer Smooth” “AK-47” “Thin Blue Line” and “Murdered Out”.
🔊#CowboysNation, please welcome America’s Coffee to America’s Team.
We are celebrating America’s birthday all week long by giving away ✌️ tickets to a #DallasCowboys home game & a ☝️-year subscription to @blckriflecoffee! Click here https://t.co/hUQTRllFe0 to learn more.☕️🏈⭐️ pic.twitter.com/iFep5BKVZt
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) July 5, 2022
It’s not a surprise that Jerry Jones’ team would partner with a company like Black Rifle. He once footed the bill for over 400 police officers in his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas, to come to Dallas and watch a Cowboys game. Jones is also a Republican and supporter of the Second Amendment.
During the course of the last four election cycles, political donations made by people associated with the Dallas Cowboys organization averaged 93 percent in support of Republicans. In 2016, the organization was connected to a $200,000 donation to America Leads, a Super PAC dedicated to supporting the presidential run of Chris Christie, who in 2015 said:
“The problem with guns in this country are criminals. Everything we need to make you safer is already on the books, and then some.”
Jones and people like him believe the right to bear arms is far more important than valuing human lives. Which is why it’s so disingenuous when the Cowboys send out a statement in support of communities in their own backyard, like Uvalde, that have experienced the senseless loss of lives due to gun violence.
It hasn’t even been two months since the tragedy in Uvalde, and to publicly boast about a partnership with a gun-themed coffee company is beyond shameful, it’s abhorrent.
The entire Dallas Cowboys organization grieves alongside the community of Uvalde and all of those affected by today’s tragic event. As we mourn the loss of innocent life, our hearts and prayers are with the victims’ families, loved ones, faculty and staff of Robb Elementary.
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) May 24, 2022
Black Rifle Coffee was founded in 2014 by former U.S. Army Green Beret Evan Hafer, and, according to its website, “built upon the mission to serve coffee and culture to people who love America.”
The company briefly supported Kyle Rittenhouse, the teenager that crossed state lines and shot three men, killing two of them, all in the name of “protecting property” in the wake of protests after the shooting of Jacob Blake at the hands of police.
The Black Rifle brand has been popular among conservatives and gun-rights advocates. Apparently, people who “love America” also love guns.
Never mind the fact that on “America’s birthday” weekend there were more than a dozen mass shootings, including one at a parade in Highland Park, Illinois, where now seven people were fatally shot and two dozen others were injured.
“BRCC is proud to partner with the Dallas Cowboys, who are strongly committed to our mission of supporting veterans, first responders, and America’s men and women in uniform,” a Black Rifle spokesman said. “The long-planned announcement was timed to coincide with the Independence Day holiday — America’s Team. America’s Coffee. America’s Birthday.”
According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been more than 300 mass shootings this year in which at least four people were killed or injured. What would it take for Jones and other Republicans to reverse course?
There may be no answer to that question, but we do know one thing for sure. Jones and his Republican friends will continue to pay lip service through thoughts and prayers whenever the next mass shooting tragedy occurs, while simultaneously supporting legislation and candidates that supports easy access to guns.
