Jesse Jackson: NFL players should escalate nonviolent protests

Rev. Jesse Jackson is calling for NFL players to escalate their protests in the face of criticism from President Trump and league owners.

“The players should escalate their nonviolent protests,” the civil rights leader told The Houston Chronicle on Sunday. “Donald Trump called them ‘sons of bitches.’ (Colin) Kaepernick is not degrading the flag. He’s kneeling to pray, which is in our best tradition. If we had not knelt and prayed nonviolently, where would we be today as a society?”

{mosads}

ESPN The Magazine reported Friday that Houston Texans owner Bob McNair said “we can’t have the inmates running the prison,” in reference to players protesting police brutality during the national anthem. In response, the majority of the team knelt and locked arms prior to Sunday’s game.

In the interview, Jackson said NFL owners have a “plantation mentality” and believes there should be sanctions against McNair for his comments. Jackson reached out to McNair and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, but hasn’t heard back from either, he told the Chronicle.

“The players are objectified in a sense,” Jackson said. “Mr. McNair is a product of the South. They act like he’s a victim or misunderstood, but those players have made him a wealthy man.”

McNair apologized in a statement, and reportedly told Houston players he wasn’t referring to them in his remarks.