Art vs Design. It used to be common knowledge that they have different meanings, but I’m not sure even the readers of the NYT know the difference anymore. Especially since the politics-first narratives that have been imposed on everything.
Design exists on its own merits.
A former US flag being offensive? Give me a break!
Before Colin Kaepernick and Nike made an issue of this, I thought the Betsy Ross flag was mostly a historical relic, sometimes used as a patriotic anachronism to symbolize the American Revolution. Now, thanks to Nike I know that anything that has happened in US history prior to the Civil War is symbolic of racism and slavery, and flying the this particular flag, or possibly any other flag used before 1865 will label me as an intolerant reactionary. Who knew?
This is a gift to the racists who may have been too shy to go all in and fly the Confederate battle flag. Now just get a flag with 13 stars on it and you will be sending the same message. Why are we giving the deplorables of the world another symbol they can claim as their own?
20
Call me shallow, most of my purchases are based on need & what I want to buy. If Nike doesn't want me to buy these shoes because it might offend someone, I guess I'll buy someone else's shoes, and get on with my life. I'll be fine a new pair of shoes, Nike will have lost a sale.
God bless the capitalist system. And happy 4th to everyone.
8
Now everything at Nike goes through Colin?! OMG.
Now Betsy Ross is in trouble!
17
Nike pulled their sneakers because the KKK has co-opted the Betsy Ross flag for their ugly purposes? How incredibly stupid of Kapernick and cowardly of Nike. It's the precursor to our present flag. What would Kapernick say when the KKK waves our 50 state flag, as I'm sure they, as well as other "Aryan supremacy" groups must. In my neighborhood there is an Indian restaurant with a small swastika at its entry. That only shows that the swastika is an ancient symbol co-opted by the German Nazis only in the early 1920's. I suppose Kapernick wouldn't eat there. Political correctness out of control. If Kapernick ever gets hired to play for a team, I'l take a knee whenever he walks out onto the field.
18
Isn't there some issue about flag etiquette?
It's certainly inappropriate to put the flag on handkerchiefs, toilet paper, mud flaps for trucks, and the butt side of pants. It also seems wrong to put the flag on shoes.
It's good that Nike is taking the flag from the shoes. The discussion should never have gotten this far.
Our flag will be proudly displayed on July 4 in front of our house.
7
We're like the frogs slowly being boiled alive and not even aware that it's happening. But hop out of the pot for a minute. Would you ever have thought that you couldn't display a Betsy Ross flag (or be criticized for displaying the current one)? That "Baby It's Cold Outside" would be banned? That works by Shakespeare et al. would be considered triggers? That students would stage protests because the Bahn Mi sandwich wasn't prepared correctly? That you could (theoretically) be jailed for using the wrong pronoun in California? That a girl who wore a traditional Chinese dress to her prom would be vilified? That books would be pulled right before publication because some woefully uninformed reader started an online mob and witch hunt? How many more signs do we need to see the writing on the wall that they will eventually line us up against before they shoot us?
32
This is the kind of thing that will help Trump get re-elected.
26
If Kap has as much power as many commenters suggest, he would be the NFL Commissioner.
4
So this seems along the lines of Nazis coopting the swastika. Our Hindu religious symbol that used to represent the sun and literally means wellbeing, is now perhaps the most controversial symbol out there.
At the same time, I doubt any brand selling in India would pull a swastik-marked product after announcing its launch.
Are we not letting the bad guys win by yielding more and more positive symbols to them?
6
I see plenty of racists carrying the current United States flag. Does that mean we shouldn't honor that one either?
9
Whats next? The white house was built during an era of slavery, perhaps that should be torn down to satisfy kaepernick
12
I have mixed feelings about Kaepernick because of his decision not to vote in 2016 and his rationale, but I don't have a problem with him pointing out to Nike his concern that the 13-star American Flag is being co-opted by racists. I'm sure Nike wasn't thrilled with the possibility of dozens or hundreds of their sneakers being worn by KKK members at their next march or rally. How the heck can we stop our country's first flag from being turned into a symbol of hate?
24
Too bad, they were fly kicks. Hello Under Armour stock!
6
The 13 star circular pattern flag was displayed on the capitol at both inaugurations of Barack Obama.
That should have been Nike's answer.
27
Looks like the militant social re-engineering of the United States rolls on. Now shoes and flags. How utterly stupid. Nike will rue the day they hired that ex-quarterback as their face of social responsibility.
19
Kaepernick can be excused. He can have any opinion he wants. Nike, on the other hand, is essentially telling us they agree the American flag is now a racist symbol.
I am going to go through my closet, find anything with a swoosh on it and throw it away. I purposely am not going to donate those items because I do not want to help promote this company in any manner going forward. Shame on nike.
19
Is this Betsy Ross brouhaha part of the RNC campaign to re-elect Donald Trump?
2
This story demonstrates another reason why I boycott Nike products.
11
Maybe, just maybe this is all a calculated publicity stunt by Nike. A few thousand sneakers are manufactured that will sell easily in other countries, then get their Offended-in-chief to make a statement decrying racism over a beloved American symbol just before July 4th. Instant national coverage with Nike taking the "high road." Feeling used sheeple?
1
Two things: (1) Nike didn't do its research if it is only finding out now that the 13 star flag has come to symbolize racism. That it now changes its mind as a result of consultation with Kaepernick isn't a reflection on the footballer, but a sign of corporate confusion and mismanagement. Who takes responsibility for this blunder at Nike?
(2) This is another example of the overreach of political correctness. If a major white supremacist organization adopted the heart symbol as its logo (in a warped attempt to be more likeable), should the heart symbol subsequently become banned? It is possible to pollute symbols by their overwhelming use by bad guys, but Nike's kowtowing to selective pc-ness is blatantly a bad example, something to hold up to liberals as a cautionary tale against giving the likes of Ted Cruz ammo in their culture wars.
31
This week is a good time to remind everyone who see the flag as a symbol, no matter what side of the political divides we may occupy, of the flag code guidelines, which list among other what not to do with the flag:
use it as wearing apparel, bedding or drapery. It should not be used on a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be attached to the uniform of patriotic organizations, military personnel, police officers and firefighters. use the flag for advertising or promotion purposes or print it on paper napkins, boxes or anything else intended for temporary use and discard.
4
Colin Kaepernick was my hero. In this episode, however, he is dragging political correctness into the land of the absurd. ANY American flag at any point in history represented both the admirable and shameful. The 13-star flag is a whole lot better than the Confederate flag. In the north, U.S. flags on lawns generally (though not always!) signal Republican households. When I tour the south, I'm actually relieved to see U.S. flags on lawns instead of Confederate ones. Context is everything! But at this delicate turning point in history, Kaepernick is irresponsibly dragging this manipulation of symbols into the foreground of national discourse and poisoning the upcoming elections and our chances of defeating (t)Rump. In his role as moral arbiter, how dare he not look past his personal perspective to act for the good of the nation instead of giving Ted Cruz at all red meat? Save it for after the election Colin!
8
I wonder if people are confusing the Revolutionary War (Betsy Ross) flag, which was never the United States flag, with the Confederate States flag which was also a flag with red and white stripes in its field and a blue canton with 13 white stars in a circle, representing the 13 states of the Confederacy.
4
Nike has chosen a side, and even though I think they are completely wrong I have to applaud their willingness to do so.
That being said, I hope that everyone who feels that the flag that flew over Valley Forge is an appropriate symbol of the United States and the revolt against tyranny will vote with their pocketbooks and not purchase any products from Nike. I know they will never see another cent from me unless this decision is reversed.
6
I supported Kapernick's National Anthem protest. I wasn't particularly comfortable with it but I agree that the US is not perfect and that we all need to be reminded to work toward the promise of an open and inclusive society free of racism. The sneaker thing, however, seems to go too far. The Betsy Ross flag is an enduring symbol of the American Revolution and the hope of a nation based on laws and the inalienable rights of man. Get a grip folks!
13
The respect I had for Colin Kaepernick is evaporating. Putting the Betsy Ross flag in the same category as the Confederate flag is ludicrous -- that flag is a genuine issue. Just because a racist minority is using a the 13-star flag doesn't mean it's a symbol of racism. (And our current flag is also used by racists, by the way.) CK and others who support his position on this appear to be looking for something to be mad at rather than focusing on solving real problems.
89
As a combat veteran, I guess I'd better protest against the VA using the Ross flag on its official seal. In fact, next thing you know, we will have to ban the 50 star flag because, after all, it is displayed at NFL games and Kaepernick finds the NFL a racist enabler. Nike, meanwhile, merrily benefits from tax breaks that allow it to buy back shares (they need it now that their offshore profit-hiding-tax-evasion scheme was uncovered) and continues to produce most of its products in third world countries, often with deplorable conditions for it child labor contract employees. Maybe the real problem with the Ross flag is that it was produced in Philadelphia, PA, USA.
11
Kneeling for the National Anthem played for the country that gave you opportunity was bad enough. Now trying to smear a flag, and its seamstress, that helped the revolution is really over the top. I can easily find other shoes, as well as other Eagles gear. As a Philly resident, count me in Betsy's corner and I'll wear her flag proudly as we celebrate Independence Day.
12
And that is why I don't buy NIKE.
12
Should we really be putting an American flag on shoes? That seems really disrespectful, regardless of your politics.
8
How appropriate that Nike would shoot itself in the foot. At least Colin had the brains to complain privately.
5
We already lost the "Don't Tread on Me" flag to the supposed Tea Party, we shouldn't give in to the racists about the "Betsy Ross" flag. Every child in America grew up hearing that story about Ms. Ross and the flag. Why would we ever secede yet another symbol to the far right?
7
@MomT yeah, it always burns me up that the racists or tea partiers or whomever gets the cool snake flag that obviously should be a favorite of the progressive movement.
1
I respected Kaepernic’s right to protest with his knee, but kicking out an American symbol like our first flag just looks like misguided virtue signaling complete with media steroids.
Colin could have used this campaign as a symbolic gesture against racist appropriation, but instead this badly designed stunt just hands a once beloved symbol right over to the kkk.
8
did Kaepernick ever pass a history class?
11
@Scott
You mean the watered down version of history that tries to downplay the atrocities committed against African Americans in this country and that glorifies the confederacy?
3
People should be very careful when taking an event or action from the 1,700’s and spinning it to 21st Century standards.
The Founders set out to create a government that was a more perfect union. Not a perfect union.
In my opinion it’s still the best...warts & all. If you don’t like it, then work to change it or move. You’re free to do either, thanks to George Washington, Betsy Ross, and the like.
13
Make America Great Britain Again!
9
I think one should be able to buy a pair if you can pass an exam on American History covering race issues including prominent people and U.S. Presidents that owned slaves and the plight of the American black race through current time. The exam should cover the social and legal issues that were changed to improve as well as created to abuse, hold back and contain black people as a race by state.
3
I supported Colin Kaepernick's kneeling and felt bad that the NFL has shunned him, but this has reached a point where he needs to go away.
1. He doesn't own American culture.
2. Why exactly should we kowtow to him? Who is this guy in the big scale of things? Would MLK be whining over a sneaker? Worry about your real problems in life, Colin, like getting a job in the CFL.
13
It’s unfortunate when a symbol of good is used to represent evil. The swastika was a design used in the Native American and Indian culture. It now represents an abhorrent period in history.
The anger should be directed at the ones who have distorted what the thirteen star originally represented.
2
Like most people his age, Kaepernick probably knows as much about American history as Donald Trump and only associates the Betsy Ross flag with its co-option by right wing hate groups. And trust mega-corporations like Nike to never allow patriotism or common sense to get in the way of profits. By contrast, most Americans cherish the Betsy Ross flag as a symbol of the establishment of our republic. In the 1930's The American-Nazi Bund proudly displayed the then contemporary American flag at their rallies. Likewise, the KKK. So perhaps images of the current American flag should be banned from July 4th celebrations as well.
4
Kaepernick stricks again.
1
Kaepernick's cause may have been righteous (regarding kneeling. That doesn't make him any good guy by any stretch of the imagination.
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/colin-kaepernick-assata-shakur/
4
"There's no such thing as bad publicity."
Nike is in a win-win situation here. First, they have the unbridled support of at least half of the US population. This demographic also buys a lot of athletic shoes. The ones who are most offended are probably not Nike's biggest customers. Second, they are getting major press, which elevates their brand almost as much as Trump is elevating his brand.
Nike knows exactly what it's doing; it has nothing whatsoever to do with ideology or patriotism or sensitivity; it's all about the bottom line.
Trump, Nike: it's all the same game. Promote your brand, get people riled up and arguing back and forth, and watch the dollars roll in.
3
Betsy Ross was from Pennsylvania and a Quaker.
There were never many slaves in Pennsylvania and they started abolishing the practice before it became a state.
Quakers were abolitionists and were the driving political force against slavery.
10
Two years ago I replaced my 50 star flag with an antique 13 stars-in-a-circle flag. It flies over my house every day of the year. On the week of the 4th it is joined by 10 small 50 star flags arrayed about our yard. Regardless of what horrible people do with that flag it will remain until it is too tattered to fly. It symbolizes the sacrifices made by Americans both slave and free to create our Nation. Nike must bend to the wind of the loudest. I listen to those who made this country the envy of the World.
9
For the people who keep saying the old flag was a symbol of freedom I would like to ask them a question. If you were Native American or African American during those times, do you think that flag would feel like a symbol of freedom to you?
If the answer is yes, you don't have the ability to "Walk a mile in someone else's shoes".
2
Sad, sad day for America - which, incidentally, the greatest country in the world. I fear that won't be true in the future.
6
What's really sad about this period of US History we're enduring is seeing how so many people just fall into their predictable tribal patterns. There are those that cast aspersions on anything and everything Colin Kaepernick does and those that support him blindly, as though he's some hero from folklore.
I got news for you. There are very few if any heroes in this world. And just because you were right or wrong once - or most of the time - doesn't mean it will continue all the time. This goes for Trump and Kaepernick and the Founding Fathers of the United States who took the revolutionary initiative to enact Enlightenment principles into our form of government despite all their flaws and mistakes as human beings.
But that's the point of the Enlightenment. That we are all flawed. That we make mistakes. But instead of covering them up and claiming they're the Word and Will of God as rulers would in the past, we learn from our mistakes, we acknowledge them, then we move forward in a better informed, hopefully wiser direction.
This Fourth of July we would all do better to remember these Enlightenment Principles as we celebrate the founding of this great nation. Celebrate a country where you have the freedom to think how you want and form your own ideology that works for your life. Celebrate that we don't have to go along with the madness of the mob or the misguided wills of Emperors, Kings or tribes in any form. Let Freedom Ring.
8
I'm glad Gov. Ducey has been successful at making life better for Arizona residents, since he seems to have time on his hands for prosecuting controversial sports merchandise.
3
Interesting how often a Millennial will complain about the cost of college or the difficulty in repaying student debt while wearing super expensive Nike’s. This is a generation that prioritizes having status shoes above education. When Elizabeth Warren talks about free college, she’s really talking about allowing Millennials to spend their money on new cars and high priced shoes rather than education.
5
Although this story really is much ado about nothing, it illustrates, sadly, this country's divided populace once again talking past each other, one side trying to soothe its anxiety by fixating on an often-idealized past, the other side just as determined to challenge what it sees as the dangerous complacency of the status quo threatening our country.
4
Considering that the 13-star flag is not the American flag but a symbol of hate and division, then why would Nike put it on its product? Colin Kaepernick is right to denounce Nike's decision. Clearly, Nike's only intention was controversy, and to support white supremacists.
2
The original flag is not a symbol of division: it has been co-opted by hate groups. To say Nike was supporting white supremacists is fallacious. They intended to honor America: it’s shameful that our country’s first flag has been marginalized due to the actions of a small group of fanatics.
69
I'm sure this has been said already but how come they couldn't have quietly changed it to the current flag?
2
@Vincent Freeman Because the shoe was designed to celebrate the anniversary of our independence from the British and thus paid homage to the "Betsy Ross" flag featuring the 13 star representing the original colonies/states.
5
Since the shoes aren't made in the US, the logistics would have been complicated and unprofitable.
3
@Stratman
Oh I get it. It just smells like grandstanding and a PR stunt.
2
I’m about due for a new pair of sneakers. They won’t be Nikes.
11
All this brouhaha over Nike, but where are the expressions of outrage over the KKK's debasement of the flag?
10
The Betsy Ross flag is a symbol of unity against tyranny. The flag represents our fight for the rights of the settlers of our country. This flag was not a symbol of the fight for or against slavery. Nike, please do not let this symbol be hijacked!
7
Argue if you will, but the unintended consequence of Nike’s action is now we all are aware that the Ku Klux Klan and other alt-right groups have co-opted the Betsy Ross flag as a symbol of hatred, racism, and white supremacy.
We all should be angry at that. Anger at Nike misses the point.
If you claim to love America and our flag, then fight vigorously against these alt-right groups and against all right wing extremism, which are absolutely antithetical to the underlying precepts of America: life, liberty, and freedom for all.
10
Fight vigorously against ALL extremism, whether on the right or on the left.
3
I'm a little ambivalent about this. While I've always supported movements to remove Confederate flags, statues and memorials - true symbols of our racist sins - I don't quite get the Betsy Ross connection. We've already consigned anything about Columbus as immoral, racist and imperialistic, but he - or at least what he did - was the founding cradle of us all. If we're now to marginalize the history of the flag, how can we honor anything about America from 1776-1860? And then from 1865-1964/1965? And then from 2017-whenever?The founders owned slaves, or at minimum tolerated slavery. Reconstruction was an egregious mix of bile, racism, violence and exclusion. In the late 1800s, we demolished the life and culture of Native Americans, finishing what Andrew Jackson started. Woodrow Wilson was a racist. The military was segregated in both world wars. FDR interned Japanese-Americans. Reagan kicked off his presidential campaign in Neshoba County, Mississippi, where the ground was still stained with the blood of voting rights volunteers. And the current guy, the most dangerous of all, is now taking it upon himself to create a new way of honoring independence as he dishonors everything the textbooks say the U.S. used to stand for.
I guess I mean, what is there left to truly honor about American history, once we eliminate all the things we used to think of as honorable, patriotic, courageous and "American"?
1
Yesterday 'patriot' Mitch McConnell lectured the nation on the respect for the museum piece 13 star flag. Somehow wearing that flag on your shoes would have been patriotic. Ted Cruz, that other super patriot vows never to wear any Nike products. From the looks of 'fit' Ted, that loss of exercise footwear sales to him probably wouldn't amount to very much.
Historical flags, especially the stars and bars seem to be favorites of those politicians from that section of the country. The rest of us find them an unacceptable alternative to the one with 50 stars.
4
It’s tough for those of us in the privileged white U.S. to face up to our dark history. Text books, compiled and approved by the most privileged, white, and conservative boards of review didn’t see any reason to talk truthfully about attempted Native genocide, segregation, the horrors of slavery, “Indian” schools trying to erase the culture of a people it couldn’t eradicate, manipulation of resources in ways that made common injuries and deaths, willful suppression of citizens based on skin color and gender—the list goes on. Now the gloried past is unraveling. One form of reparation is acknowledgement of how these vast numbers of citizens lived their history. This is an era of atonement. We can do better; we must do better. Focusing on and disparaging those who are trying to illuminate the dark past only perpetuates the problem. Does it really hurt us white and privileged Americans to listen? This is their history; they have had to live with ours for too long.
7
At the end of the day, this is a business decision by Nike. It may backfire on them, it may not. The "Betsy Ross" flag is an American flag, co-opted by racists and extremists, as opposed to the Confederate battle flag, which is a flag of treason and racism. We need to take it back.
9
Nike should have turned this into an opportunity to pull everyone together. Instead of pulling the shoe, it should have offered to donate all profits from the sale of the shoe to better the conditions at the immigrant detention centers or some other worthwhile cause.
7
If you’re looking to corporate advertising to mold public opinion constructively, you’re looking in the wrong place.
Advertising is about one thing only: product. If it increases sales, it’s good; if not, it’s bad. Nike had bet Betsy Ross was good for sales. Now it’s decided not. That’s that whole story.
It’s not clear to me we need to “reclaim” this symbol anyway.
The only significance to this story is that some right wing groups have adopted it, so now it’s associated with them. The problem isn’t the symbol or what it symbolizes. The problem is that such groups continue to fester.
It would be nice if Ted Cruz et al. spent half the effort quelling hatred as they do fanning fake outrage. That would be a better world.
3
I am very glad Kaepernick is doing well after being blackballed by the NFL. They don't seem to have a problem with players kneeling to thank God for their touchdowns. I wonder, how does God decide which team wins?
1
I see the concern about how the flag is being used by some hate groups today. However I am also concerned that Betsy Ross was one of the few women talked about in most American History textbooks. If we lose her it will seem that women had no role in beginning of our country.
2
I’ve decided to just do it: ignore Nike and ignore Kaepernick.
7
We stopped buying Nike products a long time ago. This confirms we did the right thing.
6
When Betsy Ross made that flag, there were free black militiamen and Native Americans serving in the New England militia. New England and the plantation South were two different cultures, joined by a mutual dislike of taxation without representation. By the time of the Revolution, slavery was virtually gone in most New England colonies, and outside of Rhode Island, it had never been the vile institution it became in the South.
6
@William Burgess Leavenworth This is total nonsense. As Gerald Horne shows in the Counterrevolution of 1776, the Revolutionary War was fought primary to preserve slavery and white rule, not just over "tea and taxes" as we have been taught and propagandized since grade school. Are we really supposed to not know where rum came from, how it was produced, and how it became a profit center? Britain, in the Somerset ruling of 1772, abolished slavery (in no small part from losses from African families in the Jamaica and Carribean generally rising up to take their liberty). Slavers like Washington wanted no parts of this, and wanted to maintain his manufactured aristocratic lifestyle built on enslaving African families like his good friend, Pinkney in South Carolina. Second the "North", with its textile and insurance industries built by Peter Faneuil's slave Schooners, Clippers, and by the criminal exploits of Brown (Ebony and Ivy-Wilder) was totally complicit in slavery, which built the economy of the 13 colonies and beyond. The crimes against humanity committed in New York, as the others, were unacceptable. If the South was Vile, the North was Putrid in embracing the demonic enterprise of slavery, which still continues in various forms in the U.S. This is the reality of America. It is time to do something about it to solve the problem.
2
Patriots, politics and profits. How all-American a way to celebrate them all on the 4th of July! Timing is everything.
1
Oh to be WOKE in the USA these days,since the old flag and so many other things about America is so insensitive to Kapernick
he should consider leaving the country and finding a place to live that will be more in line with his outlook,or was this an effort
by his publicists to get him back in the limelight.Perhaps Nike’s us woke customers should consider buying other manufacturers
shoes for a while.
7
So let me ask, which symbol throughout all of American history will be permissible to display without it also offending some group? Just asking.
7
Just because you aren’t offended doesn’t mean many of our symbols aren’t offensive.
4
And just because you’re offended doesn’t mean the symbols are actually offensive. It’s disgusting that the KKK has co-opted the “Betsy Ross” flag: we need to take it back.
1
I guess “offensive” relies on our experiences. Mine are privileged; minority’s experiences—past and present—not so much.
2
The ignorance is unparalleled. The Betsy Ross flag was used as a patriotic symbol for the infant United States revolutionaries in their effort to over throw the tyrannical control of the British.
Lacking a professional army, citizens formed local militias. Attempting to protect freedoms gained in America, reasons they fled their birth countries. They fought against the unfair taxes the British imposed on the colonists, taxes on basic human needs. “No taxation without representation”. They were revolutaniries for a just cause, a free America.
The Sons of Liberty, one protest in Boston turned into a violent conflict, where the British imposed deadly force. It became known as The Boston Massacre. One particular tax, unfairly imposed on the colonists led to a memorable act of civil disobedience, The Boston Tea Party. The British responded with a show of brute force, punishing everybody who lived in the Boston area with a trade blockade of the Boston Harbor. Shutting down trade which the young colonists depended upon.
This became known as one of the Intolerable Acts. Mr. Kaepernicks ignorance is hard to believe. He fights to shutdown national recognition of a symbol that represents many of the same things he is fighting for . . . And Nike went along with it.
9
I would say that Nike and Colin Kaepernick have inadvertently brought some Americans together on this. Namely myself and the Governor of Arizona who have stark differences on other issues. This should be a non-issue. It's a flag of the period by a Quaker Patriot. Kaepernick is indeed engaged in blatant historical revisionism. Either he pulled this out of his head without thinking or he's simply being disingenuous. Either way, it really forces one to wonder what the motivation here is besides more publicity at the cost of Patriotism. Hating on the United States, where Kaepernick has earned millions of dollars for both his athleticism and his political activism (via his Nike contract), starts getting a little old when you're simply doing it for an endless stream of divisive provocative attention. I'm sad to say that with this pitiful episode Mr. Kaepernick has become the opposite side of a coin of division and narcissism that features the President when you flip it over. A self-serving rivalry, not unlike Yankees - Red Sox, except here the soul of the country is at stake.
8
@O My
Excuse me, but if I’m reading this correctly, Kapernick, was pointing out, that the “Betsy Ross” flag had been co-opted by racist organizations, “When the Ku Klux Klan tried to recruit new followers in upstate New York last year, its fliers featured a Klansman flanked by the Confederate flag and the Betsy Ross flag. Similar imagery was reportedly included in a letter sent by the Klan to a college newspaper in Washington in 2017”.
So it seems to me, the only ones perpetrating history revisionism, is the Republican Governor of Arizona. But this is another example of the a-typical behavior of the Republican Party, ignore the real issue, which is racist organizations have stolen a historical idea, the flag, and have in fact co-opted it for themselves. Frankly I’m glad Nike left Arizona, couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of people.....
7
It may be that this flag has been used by racist groups or individuals. If so, we must use it ourselves within its original intent: to celebrate the liberation of the U.S. from outside domination. It’s not “their” flag; it’s our flag. I respect Mr. Kaepernick’s position but one individual opinion cannot be allowed to dominate decisions. Yes, yes, yes Nike’s target demographic is African-Americans so they feel they have to do this. By doing so, they have spread the concept of using this flag for racist purposes. It makes me wonder what would have happened if they had just released the shoes without the publicity. I haven’t heard anyone consider the possibility they are using these symbols just to get this reaction, and every time we take down, hold back, toss away, they win. Use them to educate our whole history.
7
This is the same company that pulled sales of new shoe in China because it was supported by a designer who protested against the proposed extradition policy that would allow Hong Kong residents to lose their civil rights. Maybe Nike should market shoes with a hammer and sickle flag.
11
I had never heard of any association between the Betsy Ross Flag and racist organizations, but it seems pretty clear from the 2013 -thru 2017 incidents that that symbol is becoming a popular racist replacement for the Confederate battle flag.
It doesn't seem like a wise symbol choice for a private company trying to sell a product. That historic icon is not the American Flag. The organizations who have converted it into a symbol of racist rebellion have besmirched it.
5
Suppression of this cool sneaker design shows the totalitarian tendencies of the extreme left. Madness.
9
Trying to look back and turn something in the past (spilt milk) into a new thing to focus on, better to point to today and the way forward.
Seems odd that with the Republicans, staking out the high tax, big war machine and "kill a commie for Christ" and the Democrats are high tax, diplomacy over guns but big military, everything Free but for a high price that no one thinks we need less government.
1
“Spilt milk.” That’s rich. Perhaps it edges somewhat closer to reality to describe the past as “spilt blood” or “spilt lives.” Congratulations! You have reduced the response to the violence of our past to a shrug.
1
Our objection should be to the commercialization of the flag. U.S. Flag Code clearly states that any representation of the flag should not be used on or as apparel. If peple love the flag so much, they should respect it .Wearing it as a shirt, shoe, swimsuit etc is not respectful. It is crass.
6
@Thomas
Agreed. I also object to using the American flag, or any historical version, as an article of clothing. But let me remind readers that the Confederacy only existed from 1861-1865. For a whole lot longer, the "Stars and Stripes" flew over ships used by wealthy New England merchants to bring enslaved Africans to our shores/ flew over state capitals all over the North and South whose governments enacted various 'Jim Crow" laws/ flew over Union soldiers dying to end slavery and preserve the Union/ flew over citizens and soldiers with a wide variety of attitudes toward African-Americans, etc. Does that make the American flag racist? Of course not! Its a symbol for the whole country and symbolizes our highest values.
1
It's nonsense like this that drives people into Trump's camp.
9
What a bunch of nonsense. Slavery was wrong and everyone agrees. But you can't take away our history or the fact that we are proud of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. I will never buy Nike again for caving into this absurdity.
12
“Nonsense.” See my response to “spilt milk.”
I cannot believe the level of insensitivity to the egregious mistakes of our past.
Slavery era imagery? How cute.
So any American image before the thirteenth amendment? And of course after that as well with de facto vs de jure.
God help us from the professional know it all holier than thous who have never accomplished anything hard their entire lives other than to buttonhole passersby with their cult spiel of the day.
You do realize of course that you all write all this and talk all this in slave era words using the moral reasoning of slave era thinkers? If that is how we are going to frame as we got nothing else going eh? And so on and on into a clueless self absorbed excrutiatingly dull no progress forever.
11
@In deed
Did you read the article?
But the flag has, at least in recent years, cropped up in association with racist ideologies. When the Ku Klux Klan tried to recruit new followers in upstate New York last year, its fliers featured a Klansman flanked by the Confederate flag and the Betsy Ross flag. Similar imagery was reportedly included in a letter sent by the Klan to a college newspaper in Washington in 2017.
In 2016, a school superintendent in Michigan apologized after students waved the 13-star flag alongside a Trump political banner at a football game, writing in a letter to parents that the flag had come “to some symbolizes exclusion and hate.” And according to a 2013 investigation by The Albany Herald in Georgia, at least some local Klan units were required to use either that flag or the Confederate flag at ritualistic meetings.
2
This. Is. Nuts. I thought I was pretty 'progressive,' but if a Kaepernick really can cow a corporate sports company into ceasing and desisting the sale of sneakers that are all about the Spirit of '76, then we are in trouble, folks. People risks their lives, fortunes and sacred honor for the American Revolution and what is represented on the Betsy Ross flag; they were flawed and foibled, but the whole idea was to be able to have a kind of independence that allowed us to develop the kind of critical lens so we'd recognize what was holding us back as individuals and a nation. I absolutely deplore what Kaepernick has instigated in this instance, and deplore the spineless folks at Nike for bowing before his altar of absolutely inane political correctness.
13
So why is Nike accepting American money--replete with pictures of slave owners or citizens who accepted same? Or is that Nike's next Hate-America's history promotion and ad campaign? Bitcoins only during 2020 election year?
5
Build a bridge and get over it, Kaepernick.
5
A few thoughts:
1) Does everything the Klan touch make it a racist symbol? To heck with them. As others said, we should reclaim for all Americans the history of the Betsy Ross flag.
2) Do you know what would be ironic? What if the Klan started wearing Nike shoes? What then, Colin?
3) Putting the flag on the shoes is a violation of several parts of the Flag Code. Shame on you, Nike...and W.B. Mason!
2
I think Nike needs to take a knee on this one.
What next, abolish dollar bills and rename the US Capital because George Washington was a slave holder?
8
I supported Kaepernick's kneeling.
He's wrong in this new episode.
7
The Betsy Ross flag is a patriotic, mytholised, historical artifact.
5
Perhaps Nike should donate all these sneakers to migrants on the border being held in wire link cages with aluminum blankets. It could be the only productive end to this story.
6
The co-option of the original flag by racists and white supremacists is despicable and the right thing is for the rest of us to reclaim it. I don't expect Nike to lead that particular charge, though. The nuances won't fit on a sneaker.
1
Colin Kaepernick has compelled Nike to abandon a Revolutionary flag sneaker because it conjures up our hurtful slave history.
Not everyone owns or even wants Nikes, so banning this particular shoe has limited effect.
However everyone uses money -- even the KKK and neo-Nazis -- and we have slave owners on our currency. George Washington and Andrew Jackson among them.
I call on Kaepernick to spearhead a drive to have Americans boycott all symbols of our hurtful past. That means no more using our money -- for any of us.
It's the right thing to do, Colin.
5
You just gave the KKK a gift. They are laughing and cheering and drinking beer to heavy metal. Nike didn't know this would happen, or they wouldn't have done it, because there's no financial upside to this controversy. Most of the country didn't know this flag, a symbol of the independence on which this country was founded, has become a favorite of racists. You don't give up and surrender your flag to the enemy!
7
Wow - first there was a phony right wing group sponsored by the Koch brothers called the "Tea Party." Not for one second did these folks represent the founders' revolutionary values. They were/are much more like the Tories of that era. Now we have people wanting to co-opt the 13 star flag for KKK rallies? What a travesty! Absolutely no connection! Shame on Nike and really anyone who is narrow minded enough to shun the revolutionary tradition our country was founded upon based on some hype around the NFL or the shoe business.
2
The alt right regularly uses the image of Jesus Christ.
Should Jesus be banned?
My point is everything, including perfectly reasonable things can be misused.
Where does it end?
6
Historical revisionism? To which part of the slave trade are you referring Governor? 8-hour workdays? Collective bargaining?
Following CK’s, Nike’s, & all other neo-Maoist’s logic patterns, it’s immediately time to stop any use of the cross. The KKK has clearly appropriated that symbol, & use of the cross can no longer be tolerated. Crosses must especially not be seen in southern Baptist’s churches!
7
Why are people not more disgusted that the KKK has spoiled a symbol of our shared values? Nike is right to abandon a symbol of oppression, I wouldn’t want them to use a swastika even if its original meaning matched my ideals. People obsessed with respecting the flag are fetishizing freedom, not actually practicing democratic values.
2
The USA I live in has 50 "stars". The original 13 stars, of the 13 colonies, is not really representative of anything that would mark July 4th in the year 2019. If Nike wanted to make a statement to commemorate Independence in the year 2019 that was 'inclusive' it would use a flag with 50 stars. Leaving out 37 states is a stupid move.
If we were so concerned with recapturing 1777, why have tanks and fighter planes in the parade - soldiers on horseback with muskets would me more appropriate, right?
1
The Army does have a unit in DC like that. I guess we have to get rid of that history.
Sure, Nike shouldn’t have pulled the shoes. But they shouldn’t have put any American flag on shoes to begin with—it’s disrespectful. And Ducey should have stayed out of it. He is just being a demagogue. Shame enough for everybody. Including the press, for giving Nike all the free publicity. Played again!
2
We should certainly then end any public display of our Constitution, according to the Nike model of civic prudery.
For apportionment purposes, and specifically so as not to give the slave-holding states too much political power in the House of Representatives, the Constitution provided that each slave would be enumerated as three-fifths of a person. (Art. I. § 2.) The northern states didn't want slaves counted at all, but compromised.
Reflecting another compromise, the Constitution provided that slaves could continue to be imported until 1808. (Art. I, § 9.)
Both clauses are still there, although the three-fifths rule was superseded by section 2 of the fourteenth amendment. But the language of the fourteenth amendment excludes from citizenship, as did section 2 of article I, "Indians not taxed," whose population would not be counted in apportionment for the House of Representatives. In fact, native Americans would not be fully allowed to become U.S. citizens until 1924, and that was by statute, not constitutional amendment.
Displaying the Constitution in a classroom or public building is hurtful. It must be removed forthwith!
4
Not to worry. All Democratic candidates will raise hands to endorse Nike decision and a new flag featuring a school bus.
8
Not to worry. All Democratic candidates will raise hands to endorse Nike decision and a new flag featuring a school bus.
1
According to Nike's own 2018 sustainability report: The company sources shoes from 23 factories classified as Red (seriously non-compliant with basic international labor standards, prone to misleading auditors, and egregiously violating Nike's own codes of conduct.) Nike developed a Gold-Silver-Bronze ranking for compliant factories several years ago. The number of Gold factories currently in its supply chain is... zero. The number of Silver factories is... 7. Betsy Ross, ironically America's most famous seamstress, would be ashamed to be associated with such an organization.
6
Let’s tear down the Roman Colosseum and the Parthenon just to make sure this guy’s sensibilities are not offended by real history.
4
Maybe Nike just realized that the shoe would not sell well.
2
I have a sneaking suspicion that most of these commenters are white males, probably over a certain age. I mean no disrespect by that. It’s just that your ivory tower response to this issue is out of touch with the reality of the situation. I don’t see well meaning people rolling around in maga hats or flying confederate flags. It’s common knowledge that the Besty Ross flag has been co-opted. In his particular situation, it is not appropriate. Sorry. Should we deny history? No. No one is saying that. But you can’t deny the context of the flag in today’s society. Go to a museum if you want a history lesson. You are being less than sincere if you think that this simply about honoring our country. You all know there is more to the issue than that.
3
Can see both viewpoints, but we’ve just guaranteed this flag is now a racist (or at the very least a MAGA) symbol.
On the other hand, I wouldn’t wear those shoes (Betsy Ross flag or no) if you put a gun in my mouth. So maybe all’s well that ends well.
1
Some people just want to be offended.
8
Wish I could get a Betsy Ross .It is a collectors item worth hundreds of dollars more than the asking price.
Nike lost its way.
1
I love it. If you’re over 35, chances are you oppose this idea. But that’s okay, nobody, including the Board at Nike, cares what Boomers or Xers think anymore. Absolutely love this approach, Nike!!
I'm well over 35 - age has nothing to do with sticking with right principles!
1
Unless those principles are questionable and outdated.
1
Part of the reason for opposing the first flag on the shoes is a claim that white supremacists are using it as their symbol. But letting them adopt them means that kids in the future will think that the U.S. is a country of white supremacists because all of it’s historical symbols are those of white supremacists.
This is not really as inconsistent as it might seem. The objections are sincere, this country is perceived to be first of all a land of white people who supported slavery and Jim Crow and took over the lands of non-whites. That makes it not a land of freedom with liberty and justice for all but a big crime against humanity.
The opponents of displaying the original flag say that their flag has fifty stars. But those fifty states were seized from non-whites by European migrants, too. All of those states were added to the flag before the end of Jim Crow. The fact is that there is no part of this country’s history untouched by big injustices to somebody.
No country on this Planet is free of historical injustices. These young African Americans are expressing their resentment for real wrongs done to millions of people over centuries. Their dismay and anger is completely justified. However those wrongs will never be undone. At some point, they must be able to forgive or never be able to free themselves of the bad feelings. But it is their choice to make.
Free black people fought for independence and in all of our wars. They fought under all the flags.
4
One rich guy, who happens to be black, gets to decide how the American flag is going to be used by a huge AMERICAN company. Sounds about right.... If the Klan has any leaders, they should start using today's flag in their recruitment drives and I guess that'll mean we can't use that one anymore either, subject to a decision by Mr. Kaepernick, of course.
The outrages from the left and right seem to be unlimited in their scope and depth....leaving no room for most of the country.
9
Nike pays Colin Kaepernick millions of dollars to promote their products which are manufactured in the sweat shops of third world countries which, you can be sure, include child laborers. And yet, Mr. Kaepernick is railing against the perceived racist symbolism of the flag flown during our American Revolution? The irony of this is incomprehensible. Both Nike and Mr. Kaepernick should be ashamed.
14
Kaepernick isn’t the sharpest tool in the box. There’s a reason he rarely agrees to interviews or speaks.
2
“Betsy Ross flag had been co-opted by groups espousing racist ideologies, the person said.” Then perhaps Nike could help take it back to be on a shoe for everyone. That flag is not about slavery, never, what if the al right co opts the Nike swoosh? What will Nike do then?
6
Nike has clearly lost its way. Focused on profits over patriotism. I’m ashamed to own any - all mine to the Salvation Army here in Oakland this weekend. We have some real winners here who will be good for the brand.
8
Hope you followed through on donating all yours to the Salvation Army. And FYI, Nike was thinking of profits even with the 13 star flag, they were not being given away for free. Nike was going to profit anyway. They just made a pro-business decision like any good business would. They know their markets and customers, and white supremacists and boomers aren’t their customers.
1
Is it worth noting that using the flag on clothing is explicitly forbidden in the U.S. Flag Code? It specifically says it should not be used on athletic clothing.
8
This country is very close to splitting into unfriendly tribes who feel far less related to their fellow citizens than they have in many in many decades. Trump has precipitated this meltdown but he did not make it possible. This country never made an effort to reconcile the egregious poor treatment of people who have been disenfranchised or exploited in our past. We never told ourselves the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and we must to free us from that sad history.
1
Kaepernick objects to remembering the original American flag because slavery was legal at the time. Nike appreciates that a huge proportion of it’s customers share Kaepernick’s aversion, so it dropped the product. Their business, their decision.
Frankly, the deep feelings against centuries of unjust treatment of non-white people by the dominant majority of white people has been passed down and is as alive today as it has been for all of that time. The principles of the liberal tradition which founded this republic at the end of the 18th century really had no relevance to slaves and means far less in the hearts of their descendants just because of that. They express skepticism about how reliable are guarantees of liberty and equal justice when it comes to relations with white peoples.,Everyone wants to believe that all men are created equal and endowed with unalienable rights, but those words were written by a man who kept slaves. He never freed those slaves. That is why the promise of this country to people of color has often been doubted to some degree.
1
The shoes are kinda cool, but doesn't go far enough. Nike should do an American flag series as a reminder of how the USA evolved became great, until Trump was elected.
3
This controversy is playing right into Donald Trump's hands. I never heard of this controversy and apparently Nike also had not. If the arguments against the original American flag are accepted than celebrating the birth of the nation would also be racist because America had slaves when it was established. This is a way to establish to the American voter that the left is unable to relate to this country.
18
@jbb
Only one thing to do do for those of us to don't buy Kapernick's interpretation : fly the Betsy Ross flag on the 4th, as a symbol of the founding of this American Democracy. We have to take back the flag from the extremists on both sides.
12
What's next? Shall we bulldoze the pyramids because they were built through slave labor? Are we closing Machu Pichu because human sacrifice took place there? Is the city of Oakland going to issue an apology to the Christian community for naming a stadium "The Coliseum" when that was the name of a Roman amphitheater where Christians and slaves were forced to fight to the death?
Are we canceling MLK Day because after all he didn't champion gay rights or the use of non-binary pronouns so really he was obviously a huge bigot because clearly a good person champions all forms of freedom for all people all at once instead of you know winning them progressively, bit by bit. And Howard University needs to be closed because it's never had a female university president so it's clearly reinforcing the patriarchy.
Orrrr... we could stop the Mao Cultural Revolution tendencies of the Left which are just as much of an authoritarian threat as the deranged Cheetoh in Chief and his military parades. If POC dislike the sneakers, I encourage them to not buy the sneakers. It's called market forces. If the only people buying these sneakers are a bunch of awkward looking Proud Boys in Fred Perry polos, then I guarantee they won't catch on and we can solve this problem without ridiculous censorship.
32
The left has Mao Cultural revolution tendencies? Seriously? We live in a world where the right have rewritten textbooks to call slavery “forced migration” and watered down and revised so much of is known by historians to be factually true. Where they fight to keep up statues that were put in place in the Jim Crow era to scare blacks but now insist they were to “honor” soldiers from the war. The left, and the very least, black people have a justifiable right to find the use this particular flag unacceptable given the appropriation of its use in the context aggression against minority groups. The Right is rewriting history everyday.
1
Nike throwing the baby out with the bath water. Good for them. The shoes are now going for $2500. That should make Mr. Kapernick happy.
Is it relevant to note here that many historians believe that Betsy Ross did not create this flag? There is no evidence or documentation, and the story was likely passed down through family lore.
So maybe Betsy should be kept out of it.
3
Colin Kaepernick seems to be saying, "The Betsy Ross flag was designed and flown at a time when slavery was legal. Slavery is racist and oppressive. Therefore, the Betsy Ross flag is racist and oppressive." Nike: "Yes, that makes enough sense for us to pull shoes with the Betsy Ross flag on them."
Puzzling.
And it raises these questions: For Kaepernick, is every iteration of the U.S. Flag up through the Emancipation Proclamation a symbol of racism & oppression? Does he know that the 13 stripes stand for the 13 colonies? How does he feel about the current flag?
17
I am boycotting Nike and will never buy anything that they make ever again. How unpatriotic of them to pull this product from the market. They are sure to see their sales fall and profits take a nosedive after this senseless move. I certainly hope so.
16
@KMW:. Look, this is nuts, and I say that as one who generally sympathizes with Mr. Kaepernick. But, if you identify a flag on the heel of Nike sneakers with patriotism, that's kind of nuts too. One thing Trump never gets is that the exercise of a civil right, even by protest, is more of a patriotic act than waving a thousand flags or saluting a flag under duress.
By the way, 4 US Code § 8 would seem to render the flag patch on sneakers as dubiously respectful, though the flag code in general is of no legal force.
6
Arizona’s economy is doing just fine without Nike? Um, simple check of GDP per capita reveals our economy is ranked 44th in the nation. Only doing better than the gloriously notable states of Alabama, South Carolina, Arkansas, West Virginia, Idaho and Mississippi.
On the other hand, are the Philadelphia 76'ers now going to join the ranks of the Washington Redskins with regards to having objectionable mascots? 1776, the year oppression reigned supreme.
6
So all it will take for us to lose our history is when any bad guy or group, not matter how small or obscure, "adopts" it?
As a history teacher all I can say is there's NO way this ends well if we can't find a better solution.
26
All flags are meaningless. All symbols under which humans huddle, hold us back.
We are all the same. There is no American, no fill-in-the-blank.
One day we’ll move past such things and then, maybe, we will treat each other better.
Wrapping someone's feet up in the flag doesn't seem patriotic to me.
5
White supremacists have adopted milk as their drink of choice on the errant notion that blacks are lactose intolerant and so can't drink it. This does not stop folks who aren't white supremacists from drinking milk. Same principle with the Betsy Ross flag.
19
I have been sympathetic to Kaepernick’s cause, but giving any significance to Betsy Ross’ 13 colonies flag is ridiculous and taking things way too far. It just seems plain old silly and Nike shouldn’t have given in to that degree of silliness! I love American history, all of it—the good and the ugly, but Betsy Ross’ flag?? Come on!
20
These sneakers, made in China by slave labor, have no right to wave the American flag.
14
Not surprising that many of the offended flag lovers clearly did not read the story before venting their outrage. And of course, being outraged is not a position. It is an attitude and it ill becomes almost all of us in almost all circumstances. The governor of Arizona presents a classic example.
4
So, Mr. Kaepernick rises to B-list level fame for standing (or kneeling) for a “principle”. This may or may not have hosed whatever chance he had of playing in the NFL (he was at best mediocre.) So he now makes a living being a professional protester (and probably made far more from Nike this year than he would have made if an NFL team had actually hired him.)
Nike then commodifies Mr. Kaepernick’s “sacrifice” … while sacrificing nothing itself. A few protested, a few praised, but their bottom line wasn’t hurt (had it been, you would have seen him quietly not appearing in any more ads.) Anyone who thinks this was anything other than a calculated business decision doesn’t really understand sport sponsorship. But win-win for Kaepernick and Nike.
But the guy’s value derives from Nike getting lauded for making the “bold, edgy” decision to use him. His usefulness is quite limited, and likely has a half life of less than a year. Details of his contract are not public, but it certainly isn’t one of the five year contracts Nike is known to sign with young athletes they believe really have a future.
These shoes were just a marketing idea. And Nike got more bang for their buck by withdrawing the shoes than they ever would have from selling them … selling the shoes wouldn’t have made the NYT and WSJ. Not selling them because of Kaepernick, did.
Anyone who believes this had anything to do with “social justice” has been drinking the Nike kool-aid.
8
Colin Kaepernick is an American hero. B-list? No way!
1
Old Glory is a grand old flag that symbolizes the national honor, ideals and ceremonial reverence which citizens rightfully feel towards our country. Why take a proud symbol and dash it to such degrading lows (as associating it so rancorously racism), unless you lack reverence in the same manner as the designer of these silly shoes.
The Flag is a symbol of the nation’s honor; its ideals; its heritage of upholding and advancing the cause of freedom; its unique destiny among all nations.
The U.S. Flag Code “prohibits wearing Old Glory on an article of clothing or printing its image on anything disposable” which includes these shoes. When it is retired, the Flag must be ceremoniously burned.
Given these facts, I am glad Nike chose to remove these shoes because the intention was never to honor America’s heritage or there would have been more respect paid towards the proper manner of displaying the flag.
5
Just as most of us mortals possess neither an unblemished character nor history, neither does any nation. The Afro-centric movement, for example, celebrates the power and splendor of the great Mali Empire even though slavery was endemic throughout its history. The so-called Betsy Ross flag is predominantly identified with the cause of the American Revolution which--in the context of its historical time--represented a quantum jump in the concept of liberty.
14
I ruled out ever buying anything by Nike when it first decided to promote a person who dishonored our nation, our fighting forces who, black and white, male and female, fought and died to keep the American dream secure. That's what the flag, the flyovers, the anthem represent.
Looks like I was ahead of my time. Shame, Nike, shame.
11
So sick of having this political correctness shoved down our throats! Everything is offensive to someone all of a sudden. Those taking offense at Betsy Ross' flag need to get over themselves, and Nike needs to stop pandering to them. Should we empty out museums and burn all their contents since most things in them were made while there was slavery in the country? Please!
19
This all reminds me of Mao's Cultural Revolution, where ignorant students, dupes of the party's agenda, jeered at and paraded revered professors in dunce caps, and sent them out to work the fields. It probably cost the country ten years of advancement. Once again, every 15 year old, who probably could not identify both sides in WWII are suddenly experts in American history.
18
I’ve been a Nike guy since I saw Prefontaine run in them. I still have my yellow and green Waffle racers i raced in 40 years ago. I’m Nike through and through.
Now I’m just through with Nike.
Succumbing to political correctness shows a lack of character I won’t support with my money.
13
I had no idea these racists have tried to appropriate the Betsy Ross 13-star flag, but it's beside the point. Why in the world should decent people cede the Betsy Ross 13-star flag, or any other national symbol for that matter, to the KKK, neo-Nazis, and other un-American hate groups?
These people already increasingly act as if this country is only theirs, as opposed to being the country of all of us, so if we now decide we can't use an American flag because hate groups have decided to appropriate it, it means that we're accepting that we must live by their rules and that all our actions must be reactions to anything and everything they say and do. It means we've already lost, just handing them power they have no right to possess in the first place.
If we go down this road it means we might as well concede in advance that anything hate groups decide to claim is theirs by right. Once that happens, we'll wake up one day to find they've taken everything, including the Bliss copy of the Gettysburg Address on display at the Lincoln Room of the White House, and that there's nothing left of this country which still belongs to us.
Let then keep the Confederate flag. Decent Americans rightfully won't be associated with it as it's always been about slavery and racism, and about destroying our country. It's why that flag was taken by the KKK and other hate groups as their symbol when they were created. They don't get to have anything else which is part of our collective heritage.
6
By this reasoning, companies should refuse to make Detroit Red Wings apparel because white supremacists attempted to appropriate it. Does this mean any American symbol becomes verboten if it appears at a white supremacist event? That’s crazy. An appropriate response would have been to say, we will not allow racists to hijack symbols of American history and liberty.
6
Maybe Adidas will step up and put this flag on a shoe, at least then it’ll fit my feet.
4
As a Nike shareholder, they did the right thing to listen to Kap, again.
1
Kaepernick has a right to take a knee, even if I think the focus of his activism is wrong-headed. And he has a right to criticize the design of the sneaker. But Nike cancelling the original Betsy Ross flag is a insane step too far into political correct cowardice. I’m a lifetime Nike consumer, but no more. Hello Adidas.
9
What has happened to the liberal tradition?
This action by Nike is disheartening. I supported Kaepernick's right to do what he wanted, but not his right to determine what is right for me.
11
I highly admire Mr. Kaepernick for bringing racial injustice to the national discourse. However, this whole episode seems petty.
But then Governor Ducey makes it even worse. The immature response is to kill the economic boost for his state and jobs that would help thousands of citizens out of an irrational punitive contempt for a company and their ambassador. A financial boost benefitting the state that would last potentially decades and help thousands of people. No, instead, he would irrationally try to punish Nike, and forsake it's investment with all of the good it could bring to his constituents, rather than tolerate a company's rightful choice of expression because of his disagreement. That is a far bigger mistake and reveals how petty and intolerant we are of our first amendment rights of free speech.
10
The WOKE people strike again and, as usual, even though they don't represent a majority of what actual people think, companies cower to them and do whatever they want. This country is doomed.
29
I had a copy the Betsy Ross 13-star flag while in grade school. I had no idea that racists have tried to appropriate it, but it's beside the point. Decent people can't cede the Betsy Ross 13-star flag, or any other national symbol for that matter, to the KKK and other un-American hate groups.
These people already increasingly act as if this country is only theirs, as opposed to being the country of all of us, so if we now decide we can't use an American flag because hate groups decided to appropriate it, it means that we're accepting that we must live by their rules and that all our actions must be reactions to anything and everything they say and do. It means we've already lost, just handing them power they've no right to possess in the first place.
If we go down this road it means we might as well concede in advance that anything hate groups decide to claim is theirs by right. Once that happens, we'll wake up one day to find they've taken everything, including the Bliss copy of the Gettysburg Address on display at the Lincoln Room of the White House, and that there's nothing left of this country which still belongs to us.
Let them keep the Confederate flag. Decent Americans rightfully won't be associated with it as it's always been about slavery and racism, and about destroying our country. It's why that flag was taken by the KKK and other hate groups as their symbol when they were created. They don't get to have anything else which is part of our collective heritage.
14
The flag with thirteen stars is still the American Flag. It is the flag of the United States of America. The previous flags aren't retired simply because we add stars.
I instinctively cringe at the thought of the American flag being seen as a symbol of racism. Our country was founded on an idea that we have worked at all this time to perfect.
We still aren't there. The nation represented by the flag with 50 stars is also a racist nation. We have still not overcome this, but the flag represents an ideal that all people are created equal and deserving of equal rights. One day, I hope the we realize that ideal fully.
16
Putting our flag on a shoe is disrespectful to the flag, regardless of what anyone says. As others have posted, there are fines associated with using the flag for profit or advertising. Let alone having it be on muddy shoes. Just a bad idea to begin with.
11
Kaepernick aside, could we just not embroider any version of the American flag on a shoe to be sold for profit? 4 U.S. Code § 8. Respect for flag: (d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. (g) The flag should never have placed upon it, nor on any part of it, nor attached to it any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing of any nature. (i) The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkins or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard. Advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown. (j) No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform.
18
@ZR, thank you for the comment. One question: Does this code pertain to former U.S. flags or only to the current U.S. flag?
@John It is my understanding that previous versions of the flag are not "retired," and the code still applies.
1
@LW, thank you for your comment.
One more reason to ignore anything Colin Kaepernick says.
29
I suspect it has less to do with the Betsy Ross flag specifically, and more to do with Kaep being put off by the patriotic symbolism of the American flag - any version of it. I appreciate how the governor of Arizona is infuriated and pulling their plant site subsidy from Nike.
Many of us in the middle are aghast at how the left seemingly controls the cultural megaphone. And we'll remember that on election day.
29
Good so far. But does Nike still make shoes in 3rd world countries where women & children work for pennies a day in horrifying conditions?
Inquiring minds want to know.
26
I remembered talking to some exchange students once and they brought up how strange it was that the flag was emblazoned on so much in the US, from cars to clothes to cakes to grocery products. A famous comedian - I forget who - once commented that he never trusts anyone with a flag on their lapel. I would have to say I agree. The people who wave flags the most and/or have them all over the place -- short of say members of the military or government workers required to use the flag on clothes or other items -- are often the first to rail against the values and processes that actually make this country great like separation of church and state, voting rights, our system of checks and balances, etc.
18
Here's a question: we're taught to respect the flag, regardless of our political orientations. So isn't it disrespectful to put any American flag on a shoe that's going to get scuffed, muddy, and otherwise banged up in the course of normal use?
11
The most amazing thing about this article is the revelation that Nike had proposed to open a factory in a developed nation!
40
Really? Which one?
1
Yes! Amazing
Oh brother Governor Ducey. I'm generally against these local government incentives, but it's even more ridiculous to have a political litmus test. How many styles of shoe does Nike make? You get ticked off at just one and cancel the subsidies? What a crybaby.
13
Nike’s pandering is pathetic ... Will they stop selling “White” sneakers next?
The ironic aspect of all this is Nike targets minority children and pays CK millions.....
46
Guess what all you white middle class “ patriots”, Nike knows you’re not their market and being a private company they can do as they please.
Now go out and display your Chinese made American flag and bask in the comfort in your belief that you’re a “patriot”.
9
I wonder how many people would stop using antibiotics, Viagra, and birth control pills, if their inventors had been slave owners.
Of course you must immediately burn all your $1 bills, as they portray a slaveholder. And we will certainly withdraw diplomatic recognition from all those West African countries, whose ancestors captured and enslaved all the people they sold to slavers heading to the Western Hemisphere. An, as Henry Ford was a notorious anti-Semite, I expect all F-150 drivers to scrap their rigs tomorrow. Italian-Americans, you owe reparations to the descendants of all the peoples enslaved by Rome. And all Hispanic-Americans, as well as the Central American immigrants at the border, because all your claims and possessions are based on land stolen by your murderous Spanish ancestors, you will gladly pay reparations to Indian peoples who, clearly, should be given preferential hiring treatment with I.C.E. Oh, and all your electronic gadgets, including the one you are reading this on, should immediately be burned at the stake, inasmuch as its chips likely came from racist, imperialist China, whose treatment of Tibet and the Moslem Uighurs is ongoing, not two hundred years old.
46
Sometimes a symbol gets co-opted and we have to stop using it. For example, the swastika.
10
What is most offensive:
A. Kneeling in front of the flag
B. Kneeling in front of the cross
C. Putting your feet in shoes displaying the flag
D. Wiping your shoes on a flag doormat (yes they exist).
E. Burning the flag in protest
F. All of the above
G. None of the above
3
Nike .. they probably planned the whole thing ... what a garbage company ... The original flag symbolizes Revolution From Tyranny ... The triumph & freedom breaking away from The United Kingdom. What a proud symbol.... It's things like this that put Trump in the White House ... Colin Kaepernick , yea right ...
24
And you know what the first thing coming out of Trump’s mouth on July Fourth will be..
10
I am burning my Kaepernick T-shirt.
16
@NJ Keith. Burning is the proper way to dispose of a worn and tattered American Flag, and is way too good for a Kaepernick T-shirt. I'd suggest using the T-shirt as a rag to wipe up dirty engine oil from your garage floor.
1
Does this mean Macy's will pull all sheets and pillow cases because its a KKK symbol?
50
@tom harrison
Touché!
Apparently Mr. Kaepernick didn’t want to speak publicly about the shoe. Now that’s what I call courage.
39
@Shamrock Kaepernick has lost all credibility.
1
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 banned slavery. It predates the Constitution. Who does Mr. Kaepernick think was going to eliminate slavery from British North America. Russia? Norway? Germany? Ethiopia? Mexico? The creation of the US was the death knell for slavery, not its beginning.
31
@Shamrock
Slavery and its consequences in the USA are in a long, slow, painful incomplete death spiral to this day.
1
OK, so what happens now when the Klan publishes their next flier with the Nike logo and slogan all over the place?
I think I'd like to see that.
This over the top, excessive overreaction, Cesar's wife type of reaction to the slightest suggestion of racism is nearly as offensive as those who are so willing to turn a blind eye to blatant racism.
23
This is the height of PC lunacy. I fault Nike both Kaepernick and Nike. Kaepernick for having the supreme arrogance to being the interpreter of an 250 year old American symbol and Nike for bowing to the all mighty dollar. Capitalism at its extreme. Such hypocrisy.
37
“For lots of people, it’s quite similar to, say, the Confederate flag,” Mr. Reed said.
(Big eye roll.)
Trump inches closer to re-election every day...
42
“For some people*, a history of racism and oppression”
*basically just Colin Kaepernick, an unelected spokesperson for a sweatshop labor syndicate.
Shame on him. He won’t stand for a flag that flew over Valley Forge, Antietam, emancipation, the moon 50 years ago, or a nation that elected Barack Obama. I’m proud of my flag. And genuinely insulted by Kaepernick’s jingoistic ideas of my country.
This is what happens when you make people rich over fake pain and injustices.
40
So one millionaire is "offended". Well, I'm NOT a millionaire and I'm offended that Nike is pulling this product.
I'm SO sick of the tail wagging the dog today....
31
Further evidence that the left is misguided.
19
Liberals have allowed the right wing to hijack patriotism and God, and now it appears we're allowing them to hijack our country's first flag. When racists appropriate important symbols, the job of decent people is to take them back, not simply surrender.
20
The “right wing” isn’t taking anything. Colin kaepernick is just a washed up second rate player who no one wanted, so he decided to become a social justice warrior to stay relevant. Who ever at Nike is listening to him is an even bigger fool then him.
1
Don't let white supremacists and fascists co-opt symbols that are facially neutral e.g. Gadsen flag or Fred Perry polo shirts. Even the Nazi Swastika belonged to the Hindu religion for several centuries before being associated with them.
The New Republican did a great job illuminating how the Far Right uses Fashion to instill a sense of belonging and unity.
8
As a retired history teacher, I find Kapernack and others who follow his feelings particularly repugnant. Why don't we just ban all American history prior to 1866. We had slavery legally until then. Many other countries have skeletons in their historic closets, yet those who have been wronged in the 2 centuries or more before now, do not whine about it. It's HISTORY!!!!!
42
I hadn't realized that right wing racists had co-opted the 13 star edition of the American flag. And, I guess, under those circumstances, Nike did the right thing.
7
Nevermind the former athlete and his issues, It is what is going on with the leadership at Nike to get involved in politics while being a publically held company with a Board of Directors who, up until now, have supported this dangerous business decision to support and fund causes that are contrary to most Americans, right or left, who are simply offended by these business decisions. That is curious, to say the least.
Something at the top levels of Nike is different. Stockholders must be wondering.
2
@R.L.DONAHUE. Assume hypothetically that Nike's strategy of basing their sneaker designs on racial politics and fads and using Colin Kaepernick as their marketing guru was a sound business decision, why didn't Nike get Kaepernick's opinion BEFORE they manufactured the Betsy Ross flag shoes and shipped them to retailers for sale by the 4th? And what's Nike going to do with all those "offensive" shoes that they've ordered retailers to return? Stockholders will be wondering about that, too.
Which is worse: co-opting an early version of the American flag for commercial purposes or political correctness truly run amok? Betsy Ross for Pete's sake?
I see what's coming. There are an awful lot of streets in Massachusetts named for a certain president that will have to be renamed if (or should I say when?) Colin objects to them.
8
21 other states were admitted to the union after the original 13 and before the emancipation proclamation. Am I to assume any U.S. flag prior to January 1, 1863 is a symbol of hate?
14
@Greg M.,
I feel you. Thanks for the comment.
Nike shoes are made by the slave labor that we decide to support today: sweat shops. The symbolism of the designs are secondary to what one supports when they buy Nike products.
18
Curious isn't it that Gov Ducey pulled the offer to have this factory built because he believes the change of design is denigrating American History. In fact, it is educating all of us.
Perhaps Gov Ducey should take note which state was the last to go along with making Martin Luther King Day a national holiday. Yes, Arizona.......
9
No one owns the historic design of an American flag of any period, whether 13 stars or 50 stars -- not the KKK, Kaepernick, Nike, or Trump. If Nike feels the need to back off from using a flag on a shoe for business reasons, fine. But let's not adopt the false notion that whoever picks up a flag and marches with it owns it, and all others had better back off or be smeared by association. God knows what insult the flag has suffered in the Oval Office over the last three years. Long may it wave after that travesty is over.
10
After reading the comments I need to write another .... I wish people would stop saying liberal decision. I want Medicare For All, I want to cut the defense budget, I want to make college affordable, to push renewables ....and I think this decision by NIke, a company I hate anyway, is absolutely ridiculous. And Kaepernick is nothing but an opportunist. As I said in my first comment, and it looks like many people agree, this is a big reason why Trump is in the White House.
25
From The American Legion webpage...
United States Flag Code...
§ 8. Respect for flag...
The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery.
The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkin or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard. Advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown.
2
@KOOLTOZE, but does that code pertain to the former US flags?
@John
All American flags endorsed by the Federal Government should be respected.
@KOOLTOZE, your comment doesn't answer the question I asked. I didn't ask if a flag should be respected. I asked if the former flags of the USA are covered by the code cited.
Giving into this extreme political correctness only encourages more of the same. You have to keep pushing the envelope to stay relevant.
8
Although I appreciate the comments I’ve read here, the anger should be directed at the KKK.
The KKK took the thirteen star American flag and used it at their events. They were the ones who associated an important American symbol with racism, bigotry and hatred.
American public opinion can fight and rescue this important American icon, but it is essential to know the cause to do so.
10
A state governor is taking punitive measures and halting jobs, because he doesn’t like a company’s decision about selling sneakers?
It’s just merch.
2
Sean Wilentz, a major American historian, observed in an article in The New York Times (on 9/16/2015) that "…the myth that the United States was founded on racial slavery persists, notably among scholars and activists on the left who are rightly angry at America’s racist past....[It] threatens to poison the [2016] presidential campaign. The United States, Bernie Sanders has charged, “in many ways was created...from way back, on racist principles, that’s a fact.” But as far as the nation’s founding is concerned, it is not a fact, as Lincoln and Douglass explained. It is one of the most destructive falsehoods in all of American history."
Or as Frederick Douglass put it: "…I became convinced that…the constitution of the United States not only contained no guarantees in favor of slavery, but, on the contrary, it is, in its letter and spirit, an anti-slavery instrument,...I was conducted to the conclusion that the constitution of the United States—inaugurated “to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty”—could not well have been designed at the same time to maintain and perpetuate a system of rapine and murder, like slavery...if the declared purposes of an instrument are to govern the meaning of all its parts and details...the constitution of our country is our warrant for the abolition of slavery..."
Clear enough?
16
@David Todd, not really. Slavery and the slave trade were economic drivers during the early days of the colonies and as "Cotton was King" slaves were property, labor, and a source of income and wealth. The USA may not have been founded on racial slavery, but racial slavery certainly funded the USA.
1
This makes me angry. The flag is a legitimate symbol of the founding of our nation. Just because a few fully insulting, threatening people wrap them selves in it does not degrade the symbol unless we let them. The conflict is over not letting them co-opt something that belongs to everyone regardless of Color, Creed, Gender, Ethnicity, citizenship or anything else. To cede
them the property of the first flag is to cede them the identity of our nation, the very thing those upset by their use of common property are handing over to white nationalist supremacists with silly small minded PC structured in-fighting.
I say slather the flag and images of Betsy over everything diluting their appropriation of our heritage to meaninglessness.
8
Please tell me, which version of the American Flag will not offend?
12
The Kap hiring was an omen that could not have positive consequences. A complete failure at the sport ,was benched by the team,because of which sued for money while on his knees. Becoming a complete loss at sports usually does not a Nike athlete make,so Kap and Nike now become political pundits of an ill conceived nature to personally remedy Americans of what ails you.
6
Betsy Ross was from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was was a Quaker. She had absolutely nothing to do with slavery at the time of the American Revolution. As a descendant of 45 Revolutionary War Patriots I find Nike's actions extremely offensive. I would urge all American Patriots to boycott Nike for being an anti-American company.
17
@John, I'm not doing any such thing. Betsy Ross's political views, her likes and dislikes, and if she sewed the flag that bears her name are all lost to factual confirmation. for all we know, a slave woman may have sewed and designed that flag. She has become a myth.
1
Sloppy research folks. The flag that flies at Colonial Williamsburg is "the most used unofficial flag of revolution- the Continental Colors. This ensign had a Union Jack in the upper-left corner and alternating red and white stripes. Although unofficial, this banner saw service with American forces. It also had the distinction of being the first American flag saluted by a foreign power".from an article by Ed Crews that can be found on the Colonial Williamsburg website. It took me literally one minute to find.
So easy to fall back on the cliches about Colonial Williamsburg.
1
The Constitution itself was drafted in a time when there were slaves and many of the signers were slave holders.
Yet the document is a roadmap for natural human self determination and freedom.
My father and uncle survived the Holocaust yet I was given a German Volkswagen to drive as a kid.
My uncle married a German woman who was a freedom loving, progressive woman.
Do you know you are quite possibly breathing the same air as every other person whose ever lived on Earth? The molecules are likely the same as inhaled by Jesus or Hitler.
Maybe the sad people, who can never forgive and have nothing better to do, who want to turn everything into a non-stop grievance rehash of every single thing that ever happened - especially symbols tangential to things that happened in the same time period - should not breathe.
The same air as Hitler!
Don't breathe.
20
Well, I won't hold it against the bitter ex football player who wants to keep his name in the news but I will call it bad judgement on Nike's part
8
It might be time for someone to tell Mr. Kaepernick that England supported the Confederacy. And that the Confederacy was pro slavery. The Union northern states gave their lives to eliminate slavery.
15
This is really stupid.
If racists adopt the cross (oh, wait, they have) - will all Christians then be expected to abandon it?
If racists stand there and brag of blue eyes and blonde hair, will all t-shirts showing Thor's blue eyes and blonde hair be removed from the shelves?
It's the Betsy Ross flag, and that's all there is to it.
I'm all for the Democrats and dealing with the racism that Trump has encouraged, but this is excessively reactive nonsense.
16
So many other actual problems that could have been addressed in this space. In any event, the shoe looked horribly ugly...perhaps Herman Cain would like to wear a complimentary pair?
This is so wrong Nike, reconsider.
12
So Betsy Ross is now associated with white nationalists?
What if they start singing the National Anthem or reciting the Pledge of Allegiance? Do we ban them too?
18
Betsy Ross is said to have sewn that 13 star flag in 1776 in Philadelphia and in 1780 the state of Pennsylvania moved to abolish slavery . In my opinion that flag is not a symbol of slavery but a symbol of growing freedom . Nike needs an historian on staff too.
19
Many people don't know that there is an advisory provision of US law concerning flag etiquette referred to informally as The Flag Code. As a naval officer I familiarized myself with its provisions, feeling it was a responsibility to be aware of proper flag etiquette. Some of its provisions are quite surprising. Often, folks who think they are honoring our flag are actually violating proper flag display traditions.
Among the provisions of the Code are the following:
"No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart."
Thus the American Flag should not be part of sports uniforms, sportswear, or other informal clothing (although many athletic teams seem to violate this rule unintentionally).
When I first read the headline about Nike I thought someone had actually read the Flag Code and decided it was disrespectful to put an American flag on the back of someone's sneaker.
It's clear many of the right-"wingnuts" have not considered the Flag code in putting Nike down about their decision. Nike did the right thing in withdrawing the shoe, albeit perhaps for a controversial reason.
5
Does that Flag Code apply to historic flags?
2
The Flag Code is really just advisory and sort of like an Emily Post of flag etiquette. It’s probably not intended to apply to flags that don’t actually look like our Stars and Stripes but I think the flag at issue is close enough. Don’t you?
@NJ Keith Yes, it does.
Yet another reason not to buy Nike or its stock.
14
Why would Nike want to use a symbol that has been co-opted by hate groups? Stopping production of the sneaker was a smart business decision.
Nike is boldly embracing a new message that is powerful, personal and political. Who better to convey that message than Colin Kaepernick?
Watch the Nike commercial with Colin Kaepernick and you will understand the path the company has chosen to take.
7
Simple question why would you put an American flag on a pair of sneakers. But, then when I look how many would know what Presidents day was about except to buy cars or furniture or other trash. I remember when it was two days off now of course it is combined I guess to make sure the marketing companies don't have to spend money twice. I love it don's disrespect the flag and what exactly is a flag on the back of a sneaker show how patriotic I am like those that good to church and look at their watch on when will this be over. I am sure they were not cheap. Maybe the Governor should be more concerned about homelessness, gun violence, poverty, health care and the destruction of the Constitution. I bet he has no problem with mining companies and their pollution and low safety standards. Jim Trautman
9
I wonder what people living in the past will be concerned about 100 years from now? Perhaps if there is an earth or an America in the 22d Century enough people will still have distain for the past that they were not a part of and focus on solving today's problem by living in the moment.
I'm not going to buy Nike anymore. I don't like this. If they can't put a flag made to look like what Betsy Ross did, our first flag, then they are not for me -- or America.
18
@Len It's capitalism which is as American as you can get.
@Steven Capitalism or not, if they are ashamed of our flag, dispite all of our faults -- which are a real lot less than any other country -- then I certainly don't want to give them a single cent ever again.
3
I could imagine the governor of Arizona attacking a state grant to Nike as socialism, but I guess handing out state money to large corporations is not within the definition of that term as Republicans see it.
4
If racists are using our historical flag as a symbol of hatred, then we should use it as a symbol of freedom, and drown out the hate.
Its our flag for goodness sakes!
360
@Mark-
Exactly. We can't let the haters co-opt this flag.
21
@Mark
Then do that. But don’t expect a shoe company to fight your culture wars for you. At the end of the day, I’m pretty sure that Nike looked at its market and decided that its key customers are black America - not ted Cruz. Why anyone would be surprised at this is beyond me. But those who are angry about it have allowed those symbols to be corrupted. To them, I say, ‘tough luck’.
7
@Dave
'those who are angry about it have allowed those symbols to be corrupted' It seems this opinion is not based on anything solid. A show of patriotism on a sneaker is floated and then shot down. Some are angry and some are not. Of those that are angry, is it really those we have to blame for not having arrived at an ideal society from your point of view? None of those disappointed in this volley in the culture wars are decent people who have met reasonable expectations of being human and American? Surely, all have fallen short. The Nike move appears exploitation of hostilities, fanning flames for the bottom line. Most will hope these flames will not go out of control in their lifetime, and fear they eventually will consume us. Others might imagine such a purging will burn away only corruption.
I find Nike's public mea culpa and pulling the shoes a bit suspect. Nike is a Fortune 100 company that incurred $3.6 billion of "demand creation" expense in FY 2018. I find it incredulous that a company of that size and resources to not have done its homework, including consulting with their very own woke advisor, prior to designing, manufacturing and distributing the shoes. If this was truly inadvertent, then they need to seriously review their design and development processes to avoid such missteps in the future. Ultimately, as a publicly-held company, Nike will be accountable to their shareholders. Adidas X Stella McCartney has some great sneakers.
3
He already did-respects the anthem. Now the flag, why is anyone surprised?
9
Great, what does Nike need Arizona, any state's money for for a factory? Corporate welfare doesn't seem to be anathema to the ruling GOP class but fair housing, Medicare for All, equal pay, family leave, clean air and water, action on climate change, affordable housing, homelessness, veterans healthcare, education etc. etc. for middle/low income America, oh no!
4
Unfortunately when it comes to identity politics and the business of taking offense, no lines have been established. A flag that has been a symbol that has united and inspired us for over two hundred years is no longer “suitable”. Yet another example that for Mr. Kaepernick and other social activists history begins and ends with their limited experience and the perfect, though unattainable will be used to destroy the merely great.
17
Happy day. Hopefully Kaepernick will fade back into obscurity sooner rather than later.
There very little special about him other than he felt like acting out during a period when he was benched for his poor play.
19
@Mikey That Nike would attach itself and defend this underperforming and former NFL player who was certainly a mediocre athlete at best during his brief career is just mind-numbing since it is a publically held company with a lot to lose.
4
@Mikey Ultimately ,the worlds biggest loser.Couldn't play got benched,got on his knees for a law suit purely for the dough,now nike is the worlds second biggest loser with their immensely failed acquisition,twice now ,what's the next catastrophic promotion.
6
my neighbors and i will burn our Nike stuff on the 4th
15
The progressives are going to hand the election over to the Republicans the same way their 1972 fanatical counterparts handed the election over to Nixon in 1972 with McGovern and their oblivious leftist extremism. We pragmatic liberals and moderates need to stand up to their trivial race baiting and insane level of Twitter-scolding nonsense. And we need to do it NOW lest we end up with another four years of Trump and GOP supremacy. Why can’t we do what was so successful just last year campaigning on issues the voters actually CARE about such as making our health care affordable and decent paying jobs?
20
McGovern was not an extremist. He was a B24 pilot during WWII who flew 35 missions. He simply understood the brutality of war..which was raging in Vietnam during his run for the presidency.
12
For those writers who disparage those who feel Nike did the right thing, claiming that they don't support the flag. GET OFF IT. Objecting to a flag that now has neo Nazi or racist overtones doesn't make an American anti flag or anti American. This canard is getting old and sadder each time it's raised.
85
@MD
It doesn't now have neoNazi nor racist overtones. The racists do not get to take away my flag. I don't know why you live in a world where you obey their definitions, but I do not.
59
@SusanStoHelit
Well said. My thoughts exactly. For the record I am an American of mostly African descent. No one gets to tell me not to use any American flag because it has co-opted for racist purposes.
20
@MD. NThe first flag of our American republic is anti-American? Physician, heal thyself.
11
Well, I guess we can no longer celebrate anything involving US history pre-1865, as they are all hurtful reminders of the slavery era.
Similarly, women should object to the celebration of any US history event pre-1920, as that was the era in which women were denied the right to vote.
And forget US history pre-1969 Stonewall riots, as that was the hurtful era in which the LGBT community was treated as criminals.
In fact, since something from the past is bound to offend someone, lets just forget history altogether.
35
@RM - And millions of kids in school cheer!!
1
Oh, just stop it now. To me this flag symbolizes the Colonies union against British oppression. It's too bad that racists have co-opted this symbol, but I am not going to let weird bullies dictate how I view this symbol, this version of our flag. Are we now not to honor our Colonial history at all? Ridiculous.
18
Another example of silly outrage.
17
Again I say, this country's gone crazy.
26
Some people can make a pretty good living out of being offended.
30
Just as it is repugnant for the KKK to attempt to co opt the Betsy Ross flag, it's ridiculous for those who should know better to try to use that unholy, and incorrect, forced alliance as though it has any validity whatsoever.
The Betsy Ross flag is not racist, unlike the flag of the Confederacy.
253
We are a nation at sea with ourselves, tumbling towards defeating ourselves as a nation without any help from any outside force. I have owned a Betsy Ross flag for many years. If I hang it, I will be accused of being a racist and a bigot. If I don't hang it, then I will be accused of being unpatriotic or even worse, perhaps a conspirator who is working to topple our democracy. The safe solution is not to hang it because few people know that I have it in the first place. But that solution makes me feel rotten because I will know that I betrayed myself and my country by not having the guts to do what is right. That Betsy Ross Flag is the symbol of why there is such a thing as the United States of America. So it is going to fly in defiance of all those far left AND far right who are waging war on the very things like this flag that bind us altogether.
19
Amen Mary. That flag is the seed of the Union.
6
I fully support Nike's decision since it is based at least in part on the use of the Betsy Ross Flag by hate groups such as the KKK. In fact, let's stop displaying anything that might have been used by the KKK in promoting its hateful cause.
The cross immediately comes to mind.
7
While I have been a big fan of Colin and what he has stood (well, kneeled for) I completely disagree with him and with Nike on this. This is not a symbol of slavery. Not every historical object, simply because slavery existed at the time it came into existence, needs to be associated slavery.
15
Companies do not have to react because somebody chooses to be offended. Nike has finally jumped the political shark, and one hopes this gratuitous anti-American decision will cost them. But the good news now is we won't have to see Kaepernick play in the NFL ever again. This most recent political statement is simply devoid of any historical context, and yes, I suspect offensive to all (including most NFL fans) but the most perennially outraged progressives.
9
Nike and Commandante Kaepernick are working to destroy America.
First the de-certification of Betsy Ross and her first American flag because they are of an era when slavery existed.
Next will be the attack on the founding fathers, all of whom owned and supported slavery. You know, rename Washington, DC, tear down the Washington Monument, rename the Franklin stove and Washington state, that sort of thing.
Once we repudiate and destroy our roots and our memories of American history, both the good and the bad, victory will be theirs.
Only if we let it happen.
24
@Mon Ray And we can't let it happen. George Orwell warned: "The most effective way to destroy people is to deny and obliterate their own understanding of their history."
6
@Mon Ray - We have to totally burn the entire constitution because, ahem, slavery!
Collin and Nike should spend less time talking about the past and focus on the slavery that is occurring in Libya today.
4
How does pulling a sneaker "denigrate our nations's history?"
7
I understand the problem with this flag, as it relates to its adoption by the KKK. But the KKK also adopted the cross as a more deadly (and widely known) symbol, which doesn’t stop Christians from using it. We cannot allow white supremacists to co-opt everything from frogs to the “ok” symbol, which is what Nike has done with the flag. And as much as I hate this, slavery is entwined in our nation’s history, and it’s impossible to separate from everything that was part of our history prior to the Civil War. The Confederate flag was a symbol of a government built purely on the right to own slaves, and that symbol should be as dead as that government is. But the Betsy Ross flag carries many layers of meaning, and it shouldn’t be left to racists to hijack it. (And for Arizona’s Governor to torpedo hundreds of jobs because he disagrees with Nike’s decision is the act of a spoiled brat. What ever happened to discussing the issue?)
19
This non-issue is the height of absurdity.
10
Ok, I am as liberal as the day is long, and even I think this is a bridge too far. That’s the American flag, whether it has 13 stars or 50, and it stands for high ideals about freedom and equality that this country has been trying to live up to ever since it was sewn. If white supremacists are co-opting it, then it’s time that we co-opt it back.
I have defended Colin Kapernick’s bravery for a while, but he really lost me with this one.
44
Same. Why are we ceding a symbol like the flag of the Union?! We need to lean in and make it ours. It is possible to be patriotic, liberal, and critical of our country all at the same time.
16
Through all the colonialism, brutality and confiscation of natives lands by the powers of the times, around the world, let’s view them as acts of their times. Keep actors and actions in the perspective of one who understands history more than what is printed in a few paragraphs of a middle school text. Realize that we wouldn’t be here had our predecessors not been there. Are the accomplished children painted by the actions and reputations of their flawed parents?
6
So the Betsy Ross flag is a symbol of the KKK? Since when? And it should be banned ?
Let's alert Sesame Street to get that letter K out of the alphabet be cause it is used to represent a racist organization. Sorry Cermit.
35
Wow, this was a new one for me, but in my defense I'm just a retired white guy in the middle of Kansas. But I can't help wondering if maybe Kap isn't doing himself and maybe the nation a great disservice. Maybe he should have come out swinging on this one instead of conceding. After all, sewage-swimmers like the Klan and their ilk have the stars and bars, that infamous symbol of treason, traitors and slavery, and welcome to it. And that's all they get. We can't allow those depravities to co-opt righteous, truly national symbols for their own sick devices. That seems to me a fight worth fighting.
9
This is really getting ridiculous. Just because a flag happened to exist during an unjust era, it's now verboten? I suppose we should just stop using cotton as well due to its association with slavery? I hear that KKK hoods are made of cotton as well.
This is the kind of nonsense that repels people from liberal ideology.
37
This is an awful overreach and counterproductive. We need to protect the integrity of our national symbols not give them over to hate groups and white nationalists. The flag of the Union is not a hate symbol.
4
Why should we let the KKK hi-jack a symbol of American freedom and history? I'm not sure how to take it back, but the Betsey Ross flag shouldn't be buried away. After all, she is often regarded as a key woman in American history.
264
Not sure how to take it back? It was going to be emblazoned on basketball shoes. Black, urban, blue state, international basketball. It would’ve been “taken back” the moment it went on sale.
7
Sometimes I think the political correctness in regards to a symbol of our country has reached the absurd. When I first read about Nike's decision to pull the shoe from shelves I thought this was the case. Are we not to display ANY reference to our nation's history prior to a certain date ? And when is that date ? January 1, 1863 at Lincoln's signing of the Emancipation Proclamation? December 6, 1865 at the ratification of the 13th amendment? Or July 2, 1964 at the enactment of the Civil Rights Act ? Let's all admit that our nations forefathers were not pure of intent to the words they proclaimed, especially in regards to people of color and women. But they did write a framework of ideals that slowly but surely were codified to help protect all of those that who were not included at the birth of our country. The Betsy Ross flag, for a majority of us, represents a nation's genesis to those ideals. But unfortunately that symbol has been tarnished by its hijacking by white supremacists. Symbols matter. Remember, until 1930 the swastika was a symbol of auspiciousness and good luck. Then the Nazi's hijacked it. Let's be mindful that to some, the Betsy Ross flag is a symbol of a nation not meeting it's ideals. And then, let's do our damndest to take it back !
9
Surely it’s the current day. There are still terrible acts being committed, so by Kaepernick’s logic this means we cannot respect even the current flag.
Refuse to buy Nike products because they run “sweat shops” around the world to manufacture their products. And now I see they have a misguided management team. Their decision on the removal of theBetsy Ross flag is just plain dumb!
17
In my opinion, Nike did nothing wrong with this design. What they did miss was an opportunity to have a teaching moment for this country. Kaepernick and other professional sportsmen and women have benefited greatly from being American citizens. I appreciate him and others like him for using their bully pulpit to draw attention to the plight of people of color in this country. What I don't appreciate is taking a position that all displays of patriotism are also displays of racism. Let's dial it back a little folks.
16
This is the free market at work -- a marketing decision based on Nike's marketing research, and not censoring or overreach by liberals or Democrats. Maybe Nike knows its customer base, and maybe FOX News Grandpas are not a big part of it. I'm going to go ahead and guess that anyone who is driven to reelect Trump because of this, is already planning to reelect Trump.
4
The USA flag does not belong on shoes, or any other apparel. Nike made a mistake even proposing this idea, but I congratulate them for having the sense to backtrack.
6
Nike designs hideous shoe. Football player who seemingly hates America suggests that the design is representative of racism and therefore should be pulled. Nike does so, and as a result is the most wokest of woke shoe companies and sells more sneakers. Maybe in several hundred years the swoosh will be representative of an era and a generation of Americans who were so disconnected from the truth that they would believe that this is anything but a marketing ploy. P.S. this whole obsession with sneakers that’s been going on for years is dumb. News flash: you just paid hundreds of dollars for something that was made by a small child of color under slave like conditions in a foreign country. But, it’s not hundreds of years ago and that has nothing to do with America’s vile history of slavery, so who cares.
20
This is beyond absurd. You're allowing these miderable throwbacks to define what's appropriate and what's not. Now look, you can't have a rule of conduct based on what those lowlifes do.
7
Really? Global warming is destroying the planet, children are being caged at the US border, we have a toddler for a president, a fetus has "civil rights", and this is what stirs people up? Really?
6
Eigh.... I quit supporting Nike years ago... before they were a darling of the Left..... THEY NEVER STOPPED USING CHILD LABOR..... So Knappersac can cling to whatever credibility he has left..... but he still supports a brand that uses child labor flag on it or not.
8
What a joke. It's disgusting that now being patriotic is politically incorrect.
What is this great country coming to.
10
@Laidback, I remember when being patriotic meant not wearing a flag on apparel, much less apparel that that would in normal use become soiled and discarded in the trash.
Apparently, I was silly to believe following the US Flag Code was patriotic.
I'm as "liberal" as they come. But this is ridiculous. When did we become so fragile? Honestly.
35
Are we to stop loving our nation because a spokesman for Nike tells us to? This has gone too far. History is history. We don’t have to embrace or ignore all the bad things, but we can still be proud. My dad fought for this country in WW2. He always stood proud when the flag was displayed. He saw many of his young friends die in battle. Kaepernick’s beef was with the injustice towards young black men. I get that. But when did this this all of a sudden allow him to comment on our nation’s history and how that history should be celebrated? Does he even understand our history? Understand that the democrats wanted slavery? Should we abolish them too?
No wonder Trump won. And he will again. This will surely land on some political ad pointing out the left’s disgust with our founding. Not smart. Thanks Nike.
29
The American flag of any vintage does not belong on shoes. It is inappropriate and disrespectful. The flag will literally be dragged through the mud, scuffed, kicked around, and eventually end up in a dumpster fire.
5
What a terrible decision and mesencephalic response from Nike. Thoughtful consideration should be the benchmark for corporate decision making, not knee -jerk, off the cuff reflexive responses. If all it takes to have a trusted symbol become toxic is to have a detested group co opt its use then no symbol is safe. I suggest that white supremacists start using the Rainbow coalition flag as their new badge of honor.
6
America was named after Amerigo Vespucci, an early explorer of the New World who purportedly returned to Spain with slaves.
By Kaepernick's standards, is it time to change the name of our country?
14
I support Kapernick’s kneeling, a respectful way to show concern. But this is just dumb. Could all memories of 18th century racist, since they were born in times where racism was rampant? Will Kapernick be reviled by future Americans who see him as a beneficiary of the same corrupt system he criticizes? Will promoting shoes be a symbol of climate destruction one day?
6
Absolutely ridiculous! Obviously Colin Kaepernick does not know US history. Furthermore, he would not be here if these people did not step forward after the revolutionary war.
11
Yes, so some public figures have silly ideas and inflated importance.
Yes, so some commercial enterprises are cowards in the face of public opinion.
Yes, so some media will drum up controversy and excitement about non-events.
Yes, so what else is new?
5
Nike is headquartered in Washington County which is named for General Geo. Washington, a known slave owner. In the spirit of consistency Nike needs to move it’s HQ immediately and not to anywhere named after Jefferson or Madison either.
16
OK, candidates, a show of hands. Which of your states could use a 500-employee factory?
5
I wasn't going to buy the shoe anyway, but now I will absolutely not be buying it! Instead, I will send a letter to Arizona's governor, telling him to "just get it!"
2
Just wondering: where was all the indignation and outrage directed at Nike and Kaepernick in many of these comments when the KKK and alt-right types decided to try and co-opt a symbol of our declaration of Independence from Britain? Shouldn't they (the white supremacists) be the actual target of the ire and righteous indignation expressed by Governor Ducey and the like, instead of Nike and Kaepernick? Just Do It, Governor! (or is it just too "hard" to do...)
5
I might note that they KKK also used (and more so than this flag) the cross of Jesus. So, are we to abandon that universal symbol of Christianity? I think not. Many a life was lost rallying to this flag in defense of our freedom from the tyranny of British rule. It should stand proud in our lexicon of symbols representing American values. Back off!
8
Seems pretty simple to me. If you don't like the sneakers, don't buy them.
Demanding they are not sold is denying free speech.
9
What has been more destructive to the African American community, the Betsy Ross flag or Nike convincing young men that they have to spend hundreds of dollars on sneakers, buy dozens of pairs, and buy the latest shoes every year just to be cool.
22
This is an American flag that belongs to all of us. Actions like Nike’s cede control of that symbol to racists. Should we let racists take control of the meaning our own flag? Why would we surrender our flag to racists?
9
In 1939, the German American Bund rented out Madison Square Garden. The meeting included all the typical Nazi symbols - swastikas, brown shirts, black arm bands, straight arm salutes, etc. One of the key objectives of the Bund was to tie American patriot symbols to Nazism. So, behind the stage were three immense floor to ceiling posters of "Three Great Men": George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Adolf Hitler. Apparently, Nike and Colin Kaepernick think that the appropriate response to that of any American who hated Hitler and National Socialism would be to rid their houses, schools and businesses of any pictures of Washington and Lincoln. I expect that Donald Trump will now have "Betsy Ross" flags all around the White House on July 4th! This insanity has to stop if you don't want Trump to win in a landslide!
10
Gov Ducey has done the right thing. I am sick to death of companies and the media bending over for these small fringe groups who can find a way to be offended by almost anything. That flag is a symbol of the founding of this country, nothing more - nothing less. To try and claim it is a symbol of slavery or racism is a complete joke. Why do big companies listen to losers like Colin Kaepernick. All he has done is fail as a pro football player and create hatred and divisiveness everywhere he goes and every time he speaks. Even when he was playing he was mediocre at best. When he got cut and no team wanted to pick him up he whined that it was about racism and politics, not his lack of talent. The reality is that if the NFL would give a second chance to a convicted criminal who went to prison for dog fighting, I doubt that his politics or race had anything to do with no one wanting him. It is long past time that we stopped letting small, fringe elements in our society dictate to the rest of us what we do and say and how we lead our lives. Tell these small, fringe groups that if they do not like it here they can go live elsewhere, but this is America and we are sick of their whining and complaining about everything.
10
“But Mr. Reed, of the Wharton School, said that, for many consumers, the 18th-century flag was representative less of the fight for freedom from British rule than of a period of race-based oppression.”
I’m curious to just who these consumers are as I’ve never heard of this until now. If that flag is considered representative of race-based oppression then I suppose the following should be also considered as such:
The Declaration of Independence
The Constitution
Washington, Jefferson and any of the other Founding Fathers
And that’s just to name a few. I would hope that we wouldn’t let one individual or a corporation define what is appropriate regarding our country’s symbols. They have no given authority to do so nor is there any reason to acquiesce to their views. Also, this isn’t whether one is a conservative or liberal as this has nothing to do one’s political views.
18
So the governor of AZ cancels a deal with Nike so his racist base can celebrate 'beating the libs'. We'll show you! We don't need no stink'in economic development or more jobs! Racist and proud of it. Pathetic.
3
@markymark. Of course this is what the Left Coast would think. Perhaps you should explain what tax cuts were offered.
1
“For lots of people, it’s quite similar to, say, the Confederate flag,”
Really? I'd like to see the data. My un-scientific hunch is that the Betsey Ross flag symbolizes a young nation's fight for independence to the VAST majority of Americans.
Nike lost me when they signed Kaepernick in the first place. This just reinforces the correctness of my decision. For Nike it isn't about morality or convictions, it's just about marketing.
11
Nike has made a business decision which I am sure they reviewed all the possible outcomes with their marketing and business strategist groups. Obviously Nike believes this type of marketing and intentional strategy is working and will keep working in the future. Its all about the money for Nike, only a fool believes different.
Does this Nike marketing strategy offend and divide about 50% of us? Yes absolutely. Is this politically divisive? Yes absolutely.
Mr. Kaepernick the millionaire victim is playing his role well for his take. Look its a free country and if you choose to offend then go ahead. But if you want to really make things better for the poor then I am with you. This is corporate nonsense. Nike is not helping anyone nor is Mr. Kaepernick.
There are so many real problems to deal with today and this nonsense shows up.
164
@The Mighty Quinn my question for you is would you wear a symbol of the confederate flag on your lapel? We have never adequately dealt with what we in the dominate culture did to African Americans at our pleasure and our greed, making them property. Racism has risen to the surface again in our country, why do you think this is not a real problem. It is!
8
@finscrib You're completely missing the point. The Confederate flag is a symbol of white supremacy and always has been. The 13-star flag is a symbol of our original 13 states and never has been anything else. The fact that some racist group has stolen it doesn't make it anything else.
30
@finscrib
Sorry, not sorry. For this black American woman The Betsy Ross flag represents the 13 original colonies. I'm not going to allow some racist group to dictate my history.
The musical "Hamilton" is based on our founding fathers. Should I ask for a refund since George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and others owned slaves? Should I stop playing the soundtrack?
Not gonna happen. Will keep flying various American flags and loving Hamilton: The Musical.
11
So Gov Ducey is standing up for the flag preferred by right-wing nationalist, quasi terrorist, survivalist, anti-government (except when they want to graze on Federal lands or sign up for Medicare), delusional, dangerous and definitely all-white groups who call themselves the Patriot movement. Flag On A Shoe! Definitely worth defending. Symbol of Freedom. Like a Flag Tee Shirt on an overweight, sunburnt retiree in AZ. Hey Gov, take a knee.
2
@winchestereast. Stop with this nonsense. You completely misunderstand the point - deliberately or because you know nothing?
6
total powerplay by Kaepernick. When he says 'dance', Nike dances. Good for him. He feels powerful and righteous. The irony is that this shows such thin-skinned weakness in the face of the pitifully small minority of bigots who re-appropriate this flag. It gives them way more power than they deserve, completely conceding the flag to them instead of claiming it for what it actually represents.
8
It's sad that people work so hard to find things to feel aggrieved about. What a ridiculous decision by Nike.
8
Darn it folks. We have had this debate. When true tensions were high during the Vietnam War, the protestors burned the American flag as a sign of protest (i.e. free speech). Supreme Court said okay to do it. All you could do was watch it happen, participate or protest against the protestors.
Years later Kaepernick comes along a kneels to the national anthem. But this time you could do something about it. Turn off your football watching T.V. Quit with your Seahawks tickets. Now you really got someone's attention because it is really about money.
We have before us a Betsy Ross flag on a sneaker. Really who cares? Just don't buy it (or other Nike products) or buy it. 'Nuff said.
4
Ducey is full of "political correctness and historical revisionism": shut up the dissent, don't challenge "traditional" (i.e. whitewashed) versions of history.
Why does freedom of expression and the free market apply to only *some* Americans? Seems to me that's all Kaepernick and Nike have employed here.
2
@Gustav Aschenbach. Do you have a clue as to what you’re talking about?
4
Using the American flag of any vintage on a shoe as a commercial venture is inappropriate for several reasons. It will get scuffed, kicked around, muddied, dirty.
It is a sign of disrespect.
4
One more example of progressives committing political suicide. Get used to Trump, he's going to be around a while longer.
12
Having a flag on athletic footwear makes as much sense as playing the national anthem at games. The mixing of formulaic patriotism and athletics sends messages about power relations, "might makes right", and conflation of conformity with belonging.
4
I supported Kaepernick when he took a knee. I don't equate sports with patriotism. I though we all owned the Betsy Ross flag but perhaps we should have a vote. We can remove the stars that represent the more "racist" states. No, wait. We can all have our own flag. Mine will have ice cream on it.
8
I'm pretty sure we will be seeing this news item in President Trump's re-election ads.
7
Shame on you Phil Knight for allowing yourself to be lead around by the nose by Colin Kaepernick. It's our first flag and we're proud of it. If Colin doesn't like it, that's up to him. I'd really like a pair of shoes with our first flag.
9
No more Nike products in the Cook household.
11
The sheer stupidity of the baby millennial/gen Z twittter sheriff generation notwithstanding, please please stop trying to make news out of every meaningless nothing story that only inflames a very small percentage of the not-equipped-for-actual-life folks referenced above, and the ridiculous soulless conservative pot stirrers.
Not a "story" worth wasting electrons on.
7
Any time Ted Cruz blasts you, you know you're doing something right.
1
This is political correctness gone way to far. Nike should have stood up for our first flag rather than cave in. Nike should have promoted what our first flag stood for.
The people that protested aren't even liberal - they are extremely self-centered and have no appreciation for what it took to make our country.
12
Does every single thing have to be about race now. I never in a million years would have made that association. If just one person did, is that grounds for ruining it something?
26
This isn’t about the flag. The GOP just knows they can use Kaep to anger their base.
5
I initially had some sympathy for CK but he’s gone off the deep end. And apparently taking the management of Nike with him. Unfortunately this type of story plays right into Trump’s hands.
10
I need to get out more often - I didn't know I was supposed to associate the Revolutionary flag with white supremacy and hate mongering.
16
I wonder how many people would stop using antibiotics and birth control pills, if their inventors had been slave owners.
Of course you must immediately burn all your $1 bills, as they portray a slaveholder. And we will certainly withdraw diplomatic recognition from all those West African countries, whose ancestors captured and enslaved all the people they sold to slavers heading to the Western Hemisphere. An, as Henry Ford was a notorious anti-Semite, I expect all F-150 drivers to scrap their rigs tomorrow. Italian-Americans, you owe reparations to the descendants of all the peoples enslaved by Rome. And all Hispanic-Americans, as well as the Central American immigrants at the border, because all your claims and possessions are based on land stolen by your murderous Spanish ancestors, you will gladly pay reparations to Indian peoples who, clearly, should be given preferential hiring treatment with I.C.E. Oh, and all your electronic gadgets, including the one you are reading this on, should immediately be burned at the stake, inasmuch as its chips likely came from racist, imperialist China, whose treatment of Tibet and the Moslem Uighurs is ongoing, not two hundred years old.
20
@Steve Fankuchen - I further your suggestion and propose that everyone send me their $20 bills since they have the portrait of a President who forcibly relocated native Americans. Best to get rid of these bad symbols.
8
@Steve Fankuchen
Well said. At some point, people just have to learn to move on and stop rehashing old hurts.
6
Nice move, Gov. Ducey. You just cost workers in Phoenix's West Valley hundreds of jobs. And believe me, they need them. What a stupid decision.
6
I thought it was just a historic flag. It seems it's being hijacked by the KKK and other like-minded scum. Nike should have stood its ground on this, it's way bigger than those Confederate flag wavers and most of us had no idea they were using it.
7
If Lady Macbeth was a progressive Democrat, the famous hand washing scene from Shakespeare's "Macbeth" would have been: "Out out damned racist and sexist. Out! Out!" As she continued to scrub her hands, and scrub them, and scrub them, and scrub them, hoping beyond hope to prove to herself how free of guilt she was. No underlying obsession here.
10
@JW: The key difference is she was having a mental breakdown trying to expunge that which cannot be expunged: personal culpability.
Most progressives I know are trying to get, mostly in vain, others to admit that they are *not* free of guilt, that the lingering effects of a great many practices of the past affect us today, and we are obligated to examine this.
That's an obsession worth having.
This Nike story about the Nike sneaker and the Nike spokesman seems designed only to get the Nike brand mentioned in the news. More Nike sneakers will be sold as Nike receives free Nike advertising. Nike was probably concerned about negative Nike press but decided to Just Do It anyways.
5
Here in Philadelphia, the Betsy Ross flag is ubiquitous and beloved. We should not discard it just because some hate groups have (mis)appropriated it. That would be a win for the bad guys. We on the left must be judicious in picking our battles, or we will never escape the political and social fringes.
20
I for 1 am thoroughly disgusted with "the continuing onslaught of political correctness and historical revisionism.” It is getting to the point that our country is becoming unrecognizable because special interest groups.
This country and its historical symbolism do not need to be replaced. Instead, those who do call for such actions need to have their warped ideologies replaced...
24
Ones feelings should NOT be a metric of whether an idea is offensive or a flag can be used on a sneaker. America has become a police state on both sides--it's so Orwellian it's almost unbelievable . Can't wait until they ban that book for it's offensive ideas.
9
there is currently this very trendy notion that the smaller and more obscure the offense is, the more refined and 'woke' you are to loudly proclaim your offense. The woke set thrive on creating phantoms for themselves to defeat to justify their own existence. They are all navel-gazers entirely oblivious to real injustices playing out everyday.
22
What Nike did was not about race sensitivity it was about money. The pressure groups who complained did it for power/money. Reinterpreting history is dangerous for all. We have a president who does it... and look where it's got us... nowhere we want to be.
8
I think it is very strange that they even chose that flag from that time period, versus the American flag that we've used since buying Alaska and overthrowing the Hawaiian monarchy.
In what other country would a newly designed shoe have a flag on it that was used over two hundred years ago? The design made no sense. And yes, I understand the aspect of independence from England that it was supposed to represent. That was then. This is now.
4
@Peter Because no apparel company has ever made and marketed a throwback jersey, etc. Neither do sport's teams ever wear old uniforms.
9
This is a sure sign that the PC pendulum has swung far too widely.
I applaud the Arizona governor, and castigate the highly monied poltroon who started this.
63
Maybe it’s time Mr. Kaepernick limited his commentary to football. Me, I’m more offended by the fact that someone’s trivializing an American flag by making it a decoration for sneakers.
25
@David Smith
Um, Mr. Kaepernick's commentary on football is pretty much of no interest to anyone.
1
I guess you have a point there.
2
The U.S. Flag Code is pretty clear on the inappropriateness of using the flag on athletic apparel.
"No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart."
13
U.S. politics is in a neurotic and hyper-suggestible state that makes us bizarrely vulnerable to even tiny changes in the "psychic environment."
This neurotic state is rooted in the internet--the "world brain"--which makes possible instant communication of such tiny changes. That's what "going viral" means, and the transmission of otherwise irrelevant information (for example, a shoe manufacturer's decisions regarding symbolic adornment of its products) is hence "leveraged" in importance far beyond its inherent value.
Some such "viral events" may not be factual--and that's the intent of the hacker / vested interest / hired mercenary community, who are rapidly acquiring great facility in making use of misinformation and outright lies.
I have concluded that one of mankind's very highest threats and challenges is adjusting to the instantaneous communication now possible through the internet. This story is an extremely revealing example of the phenomenon--combining deep "patriotic" lore and commitments, modern-day (and historic) racial issues and attitudes, politicization of information, and decision-making in the commercial sphere.
The phenomenon largely is a negative, "neurosis-producing," and polarizing one in this analysis, and is much more easily used to disrupt than to stabilize and assure.
6
With these irrational positions of the Democrats and Liberals, they have convinced themselves they represent the sentiments of a majority of Americans.
They could not be more mistaken.
75
I'm assuming we will be removing all depictions of our current flag as Kaep isn't very happy with the state of things right now either.
152
"Progressives" are scaring me. Every day it's another statue being toppled, mural being painted over, or flag being censored.
The progressive cultural revolutionaries are the very antithesis of actual Liberalism.
121
Jon,
I mostly agree. However, the Confederates were traitors who explicitly fought to maintain the institution of slavery. Their memorials were erected decades later by racist Southern “heritage” groups trying to whitewash history with the “lost cause” narrative. Hundreds of thousands of Union soldiers gave their lives so that we could live in the country we do now. The people they fought were no more commendable than Nazis, and the statues and namesakes honoring them are an affront not just to black people but every American alive today.
The flaws of Washington, Jefferson, Woodrow Wilson, FDR, etc. pale in comparison to their contributions. Those men—and women like the suffragettes currently being tarred by overzealous activists—deserve recognition. Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee, and all the other turncoats do not.
2
This is just one more dispiriting thing. What? The Betsy Ross flag being appropriated by the KKK? No, No, No.
That flag belongs to all of us. It may sound silly but in 1960 I played Betsy Ross in a short play in my elementary school. That had meaning for me.
We cannot let hate groups take symbols and use them for their own nefarious ends. How do we take it back? Can we show that flag along with our banners and signs showing our commitment to human rights? I understand what Colin K. is trying to do. I understand Nike's decision to stop production on the sneaker. But I disagree with the impetus.
Again, that flag belongs to all of us. If we cave to this, what will they take next?
29
I like the Betsy Ross flag. And I like hearing "Baby. It's Cold Outside" at Christmas time. Making issues out of such minutiae will guarantee another 4 years of Trump.
123
We can not change the past, only learn from it. There are countless stories of injustice that will never be set right.
Just because a hate group co-opts something (in this case a historical flag) doesn’t mean they get to redefine its meaning. Imagine if the KKK and similar ilk were to begin to use Abraham Lincoln’s likeness as code for their purposes. What to do?
We’re getting a bit carried away.
16
Unmmmmm... has anyone looked at the logo’s of the 76’ers. I wonder if this might be a problem as well....
https://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/new_logos_for_philadelphia_76ers.php
A wicked problem indeed, but I defer to the African American community- they have decision making rights on all of this. Period... end of story.
3
If I were to claim to have it on good authority that white supremacists use the word "Kaepernick" as a racial slur, would it also become forbidden to use "Kaepernick"?
One can only hope.
28
This is a prime example why history needs to be taught.
27
The new Cultural Revolution continues... how long before those who aren't "woke" enough are paraded through the city streets, wearing cone hats and holding placards admitting their "crimes" against the People
49
By his bold actions as an NFL player, Colin K. initially brought about a much-needed focus on the lingering issues of racism in this country. It started a very necessary national conversation, which continues today.
But seriously, the Betsy Ross flag?! Sorry Colin, you've jumped the shark. Witch hunts are another bad thing from our Colonial history.. remember?
31
So if any group that is considered in some form to be radical or a hate group co-opts a national symbol then apparently any future use of that symbol for any other purpose then gets attacked and if they don't remove it then they are lumped in with that group, is that how this now works? So if the KKK suddenly starts using the current US flag as their main symbol are we to then have to ban its use everywhere?
11
I wonder if the Klan knows what power it has? Want to Take away MLK day? Just have the Klan put Rev. King on their letterhead and refer to him as a shining example of Klan values. Kaepernick will do the rest.
24
This is as ridiculous as when french fries were renamed Freedom Fries in the House of Rep's cafeteria. The "progressives" are is crazy as the radical right.
33
Maybe they should have used the Union Jack of GB. We could have still been a British Colony. Who can guess the outcome of that. I know I as I am now (DNA scrambled eggs) wouldn't be here. BTW, they don't have a bill of rights with a 1st amendment.
7
Colin Kaepernick, a mediocre-at-best NFL QB, who is no longer in the league, and no longer plays any competitive sport of any kind, reportedly receives millions of dollars from Nike, one of the largest sportswear brands in the world.
Remind me again how this guy is oppressed...
And while you're at it, remind me how much foreign slave labor the "progressive" Nike uses...
It all just looks and sounds and smells like exploitation of identity politics in an effort to seem woke for nothing more than the continued promotion of conspicuous consumption.
Yep, as a lifelong democrat, I'm pretty sure Trump will be reelected in 2020, and it'll be thanks to know-nothing SJWs like Kaepernick and his oversensitive ilk.
God help us if Kamala Harris becomes the nominee, or it'll really be a landslide for right-wingers...
63
Goofy all around.
There are certainly some symbols which are heinous--for example, the Swastika after it was appropriated by the Nazis. However, the idea that we are to allow any group to redefine our own patriotic symbols and prevent us from using and enjoying them seems almost like cultural suicide. Issue the sneakers.
Symbols mean nothing without the ideas which they symbolize. Abandoning our original American flag to racist appropriators is not the spirit this country was founded upon. Not at all.
9
Betsy Ross was a Quaker, a revolutionary, a spy, an entrepreneur, a seamstress with a bold design eye, and lover of freedom. Her flag is not the Klan's, it belongs to all Americans. Nike was cowardly to make this decision, and the liberal crowd that is quick to give up our shared symbolic heritage to the alt-right crowd is even worse -- they're willing to scold people who nominally agree with them on their politics over incredibly minor and nonsensical battles.
638
@Farina The word "heritage" is thrown around a lot by people who insist their love of the confederate flag has nothing to do with slavery. The argument here is that the heritage of the "betsy ross" flag is also one of slavery.
If you love the American flag, there's one with fifty stars that's doing great right now.
28
@Farina Nike made a decision based on their market. Sounds to me like capitalism.
21
@Farina And she had nothing to do with the "design" of the American flag. It's a folktale that was drummed up in the years leading into the Centennial of 1876.
15
America is -- and has always been -- a work in progress. We cannot and should not whitewash the sins in our past, just as we must face head-on the many ways that inequality and injustice continue to exist. But no fair minded person can deny that we are closer to the ringing words of our founding documents than we were in 1789 or 1865 or 1965.
American symbols, then, represent the whole of America. They embody our flaws and failures, not least the "original sin" of American slavery, but they also embody our successes and our progress as a people. The struggle against inequality and injustice -- the struggle to live up to the ringing words in our founding documents -- is a quintessentially American struggle. The American flag, indeed all American flags, represent that continued striving for a "more perfect union" every bit as much as they represent battles fought or our economic and military might.
If white supremacists and extreme right-wingers have co-opted the Betsy Ross flag and other American symbols, the answer is not to bury or abandon those symbols. The answer is to reclaim them.
14
I’d say this jumps the flag. I mean, picking on Betsy Ross of all people? Do liberals and progressives want to win the next election, or are we just going to hand President Trump a second term? Pick the battles, people.
49
Like most Americans, I had no idea that hate groups had ever even used this historic flag. But Nike has just ensured that it will be proudly claimed as a symbol by the right for years to come. Patriotic, clear-minded liberals need to make it known that despite our country's history of oppression, the American flag is a symbol of unity, not hate.
28
@Eleanor Progressives in L.A. have told me that it's to align oneself with the far right to display any kind of American flag. These people aren't progressives; they're cowards who need to be owning patriotism and appropriating its symbols, not always fleeing hysterically.
9
So Nike pulls a sneaker designed by a Japanese supporter of Hong Kong’s fight to maintain their freedoms so as to not offend the Chinese government - but caves to Colin Kaepernick on a style celebrating Betsy Ross and the original 13 colonies the week of the 4th of July because the former NFL player is “offended”. Yep - we know where their values are alright.
This is so messed up. How Colin Kaepernick with his multimillion dollar deal with Nike has become the arbiter of what is okay for Americans is a complete mystery to me. All of this has gone too, too far. Enough.
53
Although Betsy Ross is credited with the American flag - implication being she designed it - she may have stitched and marketed the early renditions, the original design was made by Francis Hopkinson who signed the Declaration of Independence for NJ. Among his many laudable accomplishments was fulfilling a request from the then Department of the Navy to design a flag for their use. That design evolved into the flag we salute today. He is worth 'googling'. He had asked for a cask of an alcoholic beverage as payment but was denied because he was 'on staff'. I am a proud descendent.
12
Opinions can vary on this, I guess. But one thing we should all agee upon is that the Flag is to be honored, not worn as a fashion statement. If you truly respect the flag, you don't wear it as a doorag or on the keister pocket of your jeans or on your feet for heavens sake!
7
That flag represents different things to different people. It also represented independence from tyranny, which is rather fitting consider the spectacle planned tomorrow for the current occupant of the White House. We can't erase history, but we can learn from it.
218
@Frank Black New England militiamen fought under that flag. Kaepernick is pretty ignorant if he confuses the Betsy Ross flag with slavery. And Nike is equally ignorant if they let him dictate their policies without vetting his claims.
4
Kaepernick lost me when he said he wasn't voting in 2016 because there was no difference between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. How did that work out for you?
492
@Paul Drake Yeah, those people in the middle east really wish Hillary was the one ordering drone strikes on their neighborhoods instead of Trump. Also I'm sure all the kids living in poverty in this country would've been much happier if Hillary was president, notwithstanding their empty stomachs.
5
@Paul Drake
It wasn’t Trump who voted for the war in Iraq. It wasn’t Trump who was involved in the destruction of Libya. Ergo, it wasn’t Trump who was a perpetrator of crimes against humanity among the two candidates. Trump was merely blatantly under-qualified to be president. Not voting in 2016 was a moral decision.
9
@Will if you can't figure out even the slightest difference between the two, then who is the savior YOU would have elected to solve all our issues with their magic wand?
Back here in the real world, millions of lives would have seen far less damage at a minimum, and it's easy to assume some positive changes would have effected even more.
12
Wait, is this some kind of a gag? Nike and Kaepernick have got to be working for Trump 2020. For millions of Americans the Betsy Ross flag only means war with Britain, memories of its use during the 1976 celebrations, and a fanciful story about George Washington and a Quaker seamstress in Philadelphia. Why should its use by fringe hate groups hijack that older tradition? Trump is going to be playing Kate Smith and waving the Ross flag at his victory party after a critical mass of voters are finally nauseated by the non-stop outrage machine.
108
“For lots of people, it’s quite similar to, say, the Confederate flag,” he said. “The revolution now is one of diversity, of all kinds of dimensions that go beyond just white males — women, people of color, people of different sexual orientations. It’s a different world, and it’s a different flag.”
I qualify as a person of a different sexual orientation, and I had no clue that anyone thought anything in particular about this flag, except that it was one of the flags from the period of the Revolution. And, yes, of course many of the Founding Fathers were slave owners. But does this mean that any reference to our War of Independence automatically brands the speaker as a racist?
437
I never knew the confederate flag was a hate symbol til the last few years!
It was a Dukes of Hazard, Southern thing.
Weird.
Everything is a hate symbol now or a hate crime-
Maybe we are just hate-filled people and the only thing that will save us, is to unite and end the endless parsing and division of every group.
It is only done to shore up political power for a minute fraction of whatever ‘group’.
We are all Americans, maybe we should start acting like our concerns are collective?
51
@American Seriously, you didn't know the Confederate flag symbolized hate? Until the last few years? There were KKK members in my hometown and they were the good ol' boys who flew the Confederate flag. Kind of go together.
18
@A Reader @American
I think that there is an increasingly forced recognition of the dark parts of American history that is emerging in the American Popular consciousness.
When one looks back at the intense moral failings of this country honestly, we see that we've made mistake after mistake and have only been able to maintain a strong righteous narrative on the premise that we are constantly improving and moving forward to a brighter future. In this last decade when the world has started feeling increasingly smaller and the history increasingly started feeling more cyclical (trump), I think we tend to feel inclined to look backward.
That being said, why do we celebrate anything from the founding, they were just a bunch of slave owners.
5
This is nothing more than pathetic culture war pandering and a less-than-honest statement by Doug Ducey trying to make himself look good.
Does anybody believe if Nike thought the design would be successful they wouldn't produce the shoes?
The AZ Commerce Authority said Ducey rescinded the offer of a grant worth up to $1M from state fund. Nike had not requested the grant. That money was not part of the $2M incentive package to bring the Nike plant to Goodyear, AZ.
4
The politically correct cupcake radicals have taken over Nike. I won’t be shopping Nike brand much anymore. The NFL should buy their way of their Nike contract and find a company that isn’t so worried about offending left wingers who see conspiracies and bad intent behind every American symbol.
31
Three thoughts:
1. Setting aside Centrists and Republicans, most * Democrats * hate political correctness. This is a great example of American culture granting veto authority to the thinnest-skinned thinnest-fringe.
2. The Betsy Ross flag literally symbolizes the creation of Modern Democracy, the founding of America, and victory against imperial monarchy. I guess we're throwing all those babies out with the bathwater? What's next, Reason? Science? Human rights?
3. Echoes of 2016 are growing louder with all these arms-races to see who can be most offended.
24
A social justice warrior ex-NFL QB who was run out of the league and someone who is illiterate when it comes to history defames not only the Betsy Ross flag but the millions of patriots who love our symbols. A handful of bigots adopting this flag over the past few years does not negate its historic value and meaning to the majority of people in this country. The left in this country has lost their mind.
35
This is pretty silly. Using the flag would make it more widespread and fly in the face of people trying to co-opt it for their own uses.
It's also a bit much to claim that anything from early in US history must only symbolize everything wrong with the country at the time.
11
Kaepernick must secretly work for the Trump 2020 campaign.
This antic should put another quick $10 million or so in their coffers.
Thanks, Colin. Please keep up the good work.
19
It's the left's version of the Starbucks cup. A subsect that is desperate for something to grieve about has latched on to this very innocuous shoe. And Trump's campaign staff nods approvingly.
8
How does the "Betsy Ross" flag equal slavery? It also Freedom of the 13 colonies and the beginning of these United States. This PC is getting crazy. It seems there is wiping out names of Native Americans in the North (Indians of Cleveland Baseball Team) but not the Braves of Atlanta Baseball Team) and the Seminoles of Florida State but forced the Stanford Indians. Yet the Padres of San Diego Baseball Team as a mascot as is the New Orleans Saints. In other words, Indian mascots are ok in the south and Christian mascots are OK but Indians are not OK in the North. Tell me that is OK and consistent and why.
3
Kaepernick objected to the design because he can. His original protest met with capitulation so he's moved on to this ridiculous gambit, halting production of a sneaker because it uses the original U.S. flag. This is what happens when an issue is weaponized to the point that unquestioned obedience to demands becomes the only acceptable response. We have reached peak wokeness. The recent story about George Washington High School in San Francisco painting over a mural critically depicting the first president's oppression of minorities is another recent example. I'm surprised the school board hasnt changed the name of the school because Washington was a slave owner.
12
@PL
Maybe we have reached the point where this kind of emotional blackmail by the perpetually aggrieved and offended will cease. It only works if we give them authority and control - it’s time to stop caring what people like Colin Kaepernick thinks.
10
@Me -- It's hard to keep up. Honestly, when I first heard about the sneakers being recalled because of an objection by Kaepernick, I thought it was because he felt they were too "black" -- like one style that actually was pulled, too "appropriating" of black culture. You never know what will offend any more. The most well meaning white person is afraid of any interaction at all. This is what makes calls for a national conversation about reparations, or anything that touches on race, such a joke: it is impossible to have a dialog in the current climate without risking being condemned as racist, which is a career-ending charge.
3
So let’s take Kaepernick’s philosophy to its logical conclusion. Washington and Jefferson (among many others) were slave owners. Obviously then, the Washington monument, Jefferson Memorial and Monticello should be torn down and Washington D.C. renamed.
10
Why on earth would anyone want to put a flag on a shoe? Think about where shoes go and how people treat them. The only people who will treat the flag part with any reverence will be the collectors who will spend silly money and then never wear the shoes. The rest will scuff them up, break down the heels, wade through puddles and treat them like, well, shoes.
3
Six months or so ago Nike debuted a commercial featuring and supporting Kaepernick. This caused some people to burn their Nikes and Nike stock to temporarily tank. But sales quickly skyrocketed and the stock once again soared. This is a cynical, manufactured marketing ploy designed to boost sales of Nike shoes....capitalizing on America's dangerous social divisions just in time for the Fourth of July.
6
If Nike was serious about marketing a shoe for the 4th of July it would have been in stores for at least a month. Announcing this 2 days before the holiday smells of what you’re describing
3
So if the KKK appropriates a heretofore benign symbol it now becomes forbidden? Does the KKK have such power? From the way the Betsy Ross flag is now forbidden in response to the KKK appropriating it, I guess so.
1
We're all talking about it - so well done Niike!
2
@SteveRR Will see who ends up spending more with Nike because of this and who spends less.
1
@DC
Nike's stock is up 17.4% YTD - so the financial markets are voting and have already voted.
And that was after the Kaepernick signing.
The 'logic' that the Betsy Ross flag is like the Confederate flag -- cited in this story and elsewhere to justify Nike's decision -- is laughable.
You might as well say that anything and anybody associated with America before the 13th Amendment in 1865 is a symbol of hatred and white supremacy.
To make the case that there is a special taint to that flag because a few cretins with the KKK and other hate groups have used it (in paraphernalia that, thank goodness, very few Americans have ever seen or heard of outside controversies like this) is also absurd. To allow a few kooks to co-opt a symbol and then say it is off limits for any American to use without being considered offensive is idiotic.
8
http://historicphiladelphia.org/betsy-ross-house/what-to-see/
I visited the Betsy Ross House two years ago with my kids. How benighted of me! I had no idea it was a birthplace of evil. I thank Nike for opening my eyes. I've a mind to go protest with the family in two in Philadelphia this Thursday the 4th. Lesson in civics. We're a New Balance family, though. Does that mean I have to hit the Nike store in Philly first? I think that's what it means!
11
This is the very first time that I have read anywhere that the Betsy Ross flag is utilized by the KKK and other racist groups. I do not recall seeing it in any photos when these groups are represented in the media. As far as I know it is an early representation of the present day flag. Period. The fact that anybody would allow Kaepernick to influence their everyday decisions about anything amazes me. Just another example of the country to be allowed to go down hill as a result of the far left. Shameful
6
Ah, to be perpetually offended. To find and manufacture outrage at the smallest of things. And get paid for it.
What a gig.
21
Just because the KKK and other hate groups might misappropriate a symbol, that doesn't mean it belongs to them or represents their ideas. The KKK also uses the Christian cross. Are crosses now to be removed from churches?
5
Colin---Wear the Betsy Ross flag constantly on your person. Take back the symbolism. Don't let the other guys win. You have the public exposure to do that.
Or are you next going to decide that Betsy Ross was evil for making the flag? Should "Betsy Ross House" in Philadelphia be torn down because that is where she make the flag?
5
Schools need to ban kids from wearing Nike’s. The brand has become an embarrassment. Dumping on Betsy Ross on the Fourth of July seems pretty out of control. Their overpriced shoes are made by child slaves in the Third World, but they blame their failures on Betsy Ross?
9
That flag is what let’s Kapernick and Nike go off the rails without being thrown in prison. We understand our imperfect history, and many imperfect people, but our country’s core values define what is right. I’m certainly not going to let a few Nazis change the meaning of those values and symbols for me. But as a free man, I’ve purchased my last pair of Nikes.
6
My goodness - now Betsy Ross is to be erased from history.
I used to wonder how a horrible soul like Trump could ever become president.
9
First, I had no idea that the KKK had appropriated the "Betsy Ross Flag" - to me it was still the Betsy Ross Flag - symbol of our fight against the British. Meanwhile, conceding that it is a KKK symbol- is letting them control the discourse and allowing them to destroy symbols that were previously available to and used by non KKK folks (Like in 100s of parades in small towns on the Fourth of July). We need to take it back - not let them have it - Nike's concession is doing just that.
9
So are we supposed to erase history because bad things happened historically? The 13-star flag was not created as s symbol of slavery, it was created to represent the union of 13 states into one country, beginning the long quest to fulfill the idea of 'E Pluribus Unum', which in its modern manifestation is very inclusive of all races and genders. We shouldn't allow a few current racists to hijack that image. Nike should not have been influenced by over-zealous thought police, but I suppose they had to go along with Kaepernick because of their investment in him. What a terrible precedent has been set.
47
So are we supposed to erase history because bad things happened historically? The 13-star flag was not created as s symbol of slavery, it was created to represent the union of 13 states into one country, beginning the long quest to fulfill the idea of 'E Pluribus Unum', which in its modern manifestation is very inclusive of all races and genders. We shouldn't allow a few current racists to hijack that image. Nike should not have been influenced by over-zealous thought police, but I suppose they had to go along with Kaepernick because of their investment in him. What a terrible precedent has been set.
10
The Betsy Ross American flag is a symbol of our rebellion against tyranny and oppression. The United States of America was fought for and founded to give its people their independent voice in our government. Isn’t this similar to Kaepernick’s fight against his perceived injustices in today’s society? Who would connect this flag to a hate group because of some pictures and misguided literature? Kaepernick is forgoing the forest for the trees, and needs to fight the good fight instead of being blown about by the news of the day.
306
Um, hate groups connect the Betsy Ross flag to hate groups. It says it right there in the article!
8
@Brewster, It seems that some people would have hate groups dictate what stands for what.
34
@Brewster. Um, so what? What if the current flag is "adopted" by hate groups? Take it down?
14
I agree with Colin Kaepernick.
5
I think you ought to secede from the country if you think its founding flag a symbol of oppression; I for one don't want to hold a flag in common with anyone against their will. I mean this in all civility- as I think your statement is meant to communicate in fewer words than I have taken here.
6
When I grew up in the '60s I pledged allegiance to the flag every day even though I had initially no idea what the word allegiance meant, the Confederate flag was no big deal, the cowboys were the good guys, the Indians the bad guys, and Lyndon Johnson was using his political capital to try to create a fairer society for all Americans. Fifty years later I have seen Donald Trump literally wrap himself around the flag, I understand what the Confederate flag represents, I understand that the cowboys were stealing the Indians' land, and, our society is still a long way from being fair for all Americans. If anything, we are currently going backwards. The past is not the same for all of us and Nike has hired Colin Kaepernick to remind them of that. Good on them and good on Kaepernick.
Now if you don't mind I am going to go online and order my Trump Fourth of July tribute commemorative coin set with each coin showing a member of the Trump clan on the front and a military machine on the back.
5
I don't get it. The Ross flag is a symbol of America establishing independence from England, which is essentially the opposite of the message conveyed by the battle flag of the army of Northern Virginia, which is basically "Establish ownership over other people, lose a war, and then whine about it in perpetuity."
33
I sometimes think Kaepernick is not only on Nike's payroll but Trump's as well. This kind of nonsense only ensures Trump winning re-election.
179
4 U.S. Code § 8. Respect for flag
(d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free. Bunting of blue, white, and red, always arranged with the blue above, the white in the middle, and the red below, should be used for covering a speaker’s desk, draping the front of the platform, and for decoration in general.
(e) The flag should never be fastened, displayed, used, or stored in such a manner as to permit it to be easily torn, soiled, or damaged in any way.
(i) The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkins or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard. Advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown.
(j) No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart.
9
@Renee
In 1990, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Eichman that the prohibition of burning the U.S. flag conflicts with the First Amendment right to freedom of speech and is therefore unconstitutional.
So SCOTUS 1 - US Flag Code 0
3
@SteveRR
You seem to be confusing legal rights with etiquette. Just because one has the right to do something doesn’t make it the right thing to do.
1
I think everyone should refresh their understanding of how to respect the American flag
An interesting refresher for everyone:
4 U.S. Code § 8.
Respect for flag
U.S. Code
(d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free. Bunting of blue, white, and red, always arranged with the blue above, the white in the middle, and the red below, should be used for covering a speaker’s desk, draping the front of the platform, and for decoration in general.
(e) The flag should never be fastened, displayed, used, or stored in such a manner as to permit it to be easily torn, soiled, or damaged in any way.
(i) The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkins or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard. Advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown.
(j) No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform. However, a flag patch may be affixed to the uniform of military personnel, firemen, policemen, and members of patriotic organizations. The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. Therefore, the lapel flag pin being a replica, should be worn on the left lapel near the heart.
3
If US companies want to be fair and square with their customers, they have no business pandering to the politics of the day. I applaud Nike for removing this sneaker from the market as it can definitely be interpreted as a " shoe made for the real right -winger that panders racist and pro Maga views" etc....
This is like the workers of Wayfair who are walking out to protest the sale of furniture to the detention centers at the southern border because that underscores the racist anti immigration views of this administration. Interesting to see though that it will be an actor, a performer or a sportsperson who will make a difference in such the divisive time we are living in. We, the People have no real say in the marketing of such products. The only power bestowed to us is the power of the vote and vote we will in 2020.
1
This is the kind of story that divides us. Both Kaepernick and Nike need to read history. This was our first flag made by Betsy Ross at Washington's request. If at some later time (which I'm sure happened) it has been co-opted by a right wing, racist hate group it does not change the fact that it is our nation's first flag. This is political correctness without facts to back it up. I seldom agree with the politicians that run the state of Arizona. This is not a left or right issue. It's about getting facts straight and acting in an adult manner. Both Nike (a company that I greatly admire) and Kaepernick got this really wrong.
47
That's really ridiculous, the circular design created by Betsy Ross had nothing to do with slavery. I suppose we should get rid of the Met's collection of medieval armor because slavery existed at the time. Definitely the Mona Lisa should not be viewed by anyone because slavery existed when it was painted. For certain, a big chunk of America seems to be unable to get through a day without being unbelievably offended by some innocuous, meaningless thing.
134
@Dan Stackhouse
In the vein of our commentary, why doesn't Mr. Kaepernick bring his activism to the pyramids in Egypt next - despite the fact that they have stood for centuries-and see how well his undisputed power fares outside of the United States.
By the way, when was all this the power and control ceded to him to dictate what is and isn't, according to his determination ?
Just exactly who do Mr. Kapernick and Nike think they are ?
23
My understanding is that is wasn't the Betsy Ross flag that is bothering people, but rather that a number of racist groups had adopted the flag as one of their symbols.
Personally, I'm not sure it's a good idea to simply cede something like this to racists simply because they decided to claim it.
For example, a couple of years ago, a white supremacist group announced that their official tennis shoes were now New Balance (I think the New Balance CEO announced he was voting for Trump). Other times they've claimed without invitation Wendys hamburgers, Krispy Creme donuts, Depeche Mode, polo shirts, Papa Murphy's pizza, the Detroit Red Wings logo, milk, and for some reason, Taylor Swift.
Do we simply hand these over? I think not.
I will continue to keep the symbols of my country that were designed to represent its sometimes more –and sometimes less– perfect ideals… while at the very same time I categorically reject actual symbols of racism like the rebel flag and taunting statues of traitors which represent only the culture, history and ideology of hatred.
(I'm also keeping my New Balance shoes.)
64
As a history major, let's think about this for a moment. If there had been no American Revolution, then no one, of any color or gender, would be free or have any constitutional rights. How on earth can a flag utilized in that cause now be objectionable or "racist?" I weep for this country.
149
Having Nike commercialize the American flag and the Klan deface it with their smear, shouldn't diminish what the flag has meant.
The flag is owned by the American people. Not those who use to further their own finances or agenda.
28
@Gina D
Evidently not any more it isn't owned by the American people- not without Mr. Kaepernick's approval.
Sadly thankful that my family members of the Greatest Generation, World War 2 veterans, have been spared from witnessing this. I wonder if Dad's sacrifice at Normandy really did mean something, after all - maybe the American flag he fought under that day isn't politically correct after all.
8
Cancel any attention I pay to Colin K. He started off making a lot of sense but this episode, and Nike’s response, is absolutely absurd.
Ten bucks says Arizona restores that funding.
Shame on Nike for bowing to this extreme pressure over “some people” being offended.
The War of Independence was real history. The flag is part of that history. Same for the Confederate flag. If it’s to be banned, then ban all teaching and reference to the Civil War, too. Ban Betsy Ross. Ban George Washington. Ban Lincoln, and Grant, anyone and everything associated with either of these critical historical events. Ban talking about them. Definitely ban them from schools.
Does any of this sound like Russia or China yet?
I’m about as liberal as it gets, but when “some people” interpreting an image from our history as hurtful, racist or a hate crime, we’ve gone too far.
I sure hope the Democratic candidates stay away from this one. It’s going to be a third rail—support the ban on the 13-star flag and you’re presidential toast. Or so I hope.
43
While I agree with Kap on the systemic racism in our society I disagree with this particular issue. I realize the Betsy Ross flag has been used for some white supremacy groups but to allow them to be the reason for an entire line of shoes intended to celebrate independence is an actual win for their cause. Why not take back the flag from that disgusting small section of America? Didn’t the resistance take back Pepe the frog? Isn’t the flag worth fighting for? Why let hate win? Isn’t that what Kap was fighting? Isn’t it what we are all fighting? Lastly, this will be another pc bomb in Trumps arsenal to shoot off in 2020. Stop letting hate win.
13
Why didn't Nike just change it to the current flag? Seems weird.
2
How did a mediocre former NFL quarterback become the final arbiter of what is or isn't racist in America? And why is Nike trying its best to become a company that only half of America will buy from? How is stoking the flames of the culture wars in this country a marketing strategy worth pursuing? Nike may think they are edgy and cool but I think they are divisive and shortsighted.
97
Well said Todd.
5
@Todd He's a media star; a creature of the TV and socials medias. They can make or break you...as they made Trump (by mistake but..still...). And Kaepernick. It's all a sick joke.
5
@Todd "How did a mediocre former NFL quarterback become the final arbiter of what is or isn't racist in America? "
He didn't. Hope this helps.
5
Arizona and their garbage controversy-seeking governor can call when they start recognizing the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr federal holiday. They’re so out of touch that they wouldn’t know hurtful symbolism if it smacked them in the face.
We have real problems to solve and we need real adults to solve them.
4
@Dan D
Arizona does recognize the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr federal holiday. It took a while but has been a holiday since 1992.
4
Sounds like a victory for the white supremacists who have hijacked the flag and for their toxic agenda. Also sounds like a victory for the self-righteous left in censoring something that doesn't conform to today's woke sensibilities.
My guess is that Nike will score points with the controversy and increase sales, but at the expense of our social discourse. Very disappointing.
17
" Nothing can happen in America anymore if Colin Kaepernick doesn’t like it."
And Nothing can happen in the Senate anymore if Mitch McConnell doesn’t like it. How's that other foot feel?
7
@jwdooley both are wrong but at least McConnell was elected by the people.
7
@Lisa R
McConnell was elected by about 870,000 Kentuckians. That's less than 3 tenths of 1 per cent of the US population (0.0027), and now he can prevent the government from functioning at all when he chooses.
So, yeah, elected by the people.
1
@jwdooley
Feels great! McConnell's in charge because you guys were campaigning against a Republican president who is supposedly an evil corrupt fascist and you still couldn't win the senate.
5
Betsy Ross and her American flag are important parts of American history.
It is sheer nonsense to cede her and it to any anti-American group; as a long-time student of American history and politics I never heard of their association with or appropriation by the KKK or any other fringe group. Betsy Ross and her flag are about as American as it gets.
If we and Nike and the rest of America are, at the command of all-powerful Colin Kaepernick, supposed to eschew any symbol or historic element from the United States’ so-called “slave era,” which lasted roughly from 1776 to 1865, I think we will have to erase or ignore an enormous amount of our country’s history.
I suppose that also means we must stop using any technology or medical advances developed from 1776 to 1865, burn all the American books written during that period, and remove from currency and monuments and cities any names or images of presidents and other key officials from that very long period. Oh, and don’t forget to burn down most of the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History, or at least remove all artifacts and text panels from the slave era.
Political correctness has clearly run amok in America; or is this merely a cynical ploy by Nike and Kaepernick to generate publicity and sales?
21
Gosh, why wouldn't Nike want to use a flag that is being adopted by the KKK and other white supremacist groups? Does it have to be because they hate America? If I were an executive at Nike, I would appreciate the head's up, whether from Colin Kaepernick or anyone else.
I had no idea what flags these groups are using, but before you get outraged at Nike, ask yourself this: How would you feel if they made a sneaker featuring a design used on an Antifa flag? I don't know what an Antifa flag looks like, or if they even have one, but I'm sure if any banner Antifa may use were stamped onto merchandise, there would be an uproar.
And Kaepernick didn't dictate anything or make a public protest. Arizona's governor did. Now private companies can't police their own speech without jeopardizing their support from the state? This is ridiculous posturing from the governor of Arizona.
7
It’s the American flag. Really?
@D B
It's one version of the American flag. They can use the current flag or some other patriotic symbol. The long and short of it is, there's a good chance that using a perfectly good flag that is currently being coopted by the KKK may alienate part of their customer base. It's a free market decision about style -- what's in and what's out with their customers.
I love it when Conservatives get all bent out of shape on a for-profit company pulling their own design for their own product, but when it comes to religious symbols being displayed by the government they say its patriotism & the right to religious freedom. And when a cake baker decides they don't want to make a cake for a gay couple they support their private interests over the consumer. Hypocrites.
6
So now the flag stands for white, male racist slave owners?
The flag has no meaning related to the enlightenment and humanism, which were founding principals way ahead of their time and which has taken two centuries for the cultures of this nation and the world to catch up to?
The flag has no meaning related to ideals that allows KC to neal and have his wacky flag opinions known?
In what other nation in history has power been about ideals and not the demographic in power?
Seams like the snake eating its tale to me.
27
Cynical self-serving decisions by cynical self-serving people all around. They deserve each other. The rest of us deserve better.
6
If you grasp the hysteria Television and social media created in this case, go back and read it again, then you will believe me when I tell you that Television is going to blow up the world.
2
Based on Kaepernick's so called "logic" it is just as bad if not far worse to celebrate July 4th at all. If the 13 star flag is a symbol of "oppression" July 4th itself is a glant celebration of "oppression."
Further why just eliminate the 13 star American flag based on the same "logic" ALL American flags are symbols of oppression. They all contain the same design and ALL include stars for the original 13 states. In addition Kaepernick clearly still believes the United States is still a racist nation.
10
So a radical authoritatively proclaims that a particular version of the American flag -- one of which holds significant historical meaning -- is racist and shouldn't be celebrated, followed by Nike heeding to this one ignorant individual's demands, likely out of fear of being punished by the "Woke" crowed.
So tell me, how is this not oppressive to free speech or enterprise? This is literally tyranny by a small group of "authority" figures. I think they call it authoritarianism.
13
@Chris "So tell me, how is this not oppressive to free speech or enterprise?"
Because their freedom of speech is not being oppressed. I can't put it any more simply than that.
5
So if the KKK distributed a photoshopped image of Mr Kaepernick waving the Confederate flag, he would boycott himself?
And for the next round of the Democratic debates: "Because some see the American flag, regardless of era, as a symbol of racism and imperialism generating in them feelings of marginalization or even oppression, as president would you discourage displays of the flag at government-sponsored events?"
I fear the likes of Nike and Kaepernick do the Republicans' job for them.
33
I admired Colin Kaepernick's stand in the past. But this just seems like him making sure his name stays in the news.
9
Who cares if the right is offended. Didn’t they already burn all their Nike stuff? Kudos to Nike for realizing what side its bread is buttered on.
1
Just a few weeks following the deadly massacre of innocent law enforcement employees in Dallas in July 2016, Kaepernick showed up on the field with "pig" socks...
https://www.nbcsports.com/bayarea/49ers/kaepernick-made-prior-statement-police-pigs-socks
That he would do this so shortly after the catastrophic Dallas massacre at which fourteen innocent law enforcement employees were shot by a crazed Black Supremacist sniper calls into question his character...to put it mildly . That Nike can align itself with such a symbol of hatred and violence shows a dangerous cynicism and appalling lack of judgement.
18
I've been flying a "Don't Tread On Me" flag for years, along with the "Bennington" flag (featuring the stars in more of a horseshoe shape than the Betsy Ross design). I don't care that right-wing white supremacists, Tea Partiers and other trash have recently taken a shine to the flag with the snake on it. That flag, as well as the Betsy Ross version, belongs to all of America. Unlike the Confederate flag, which only belongs to those who believed in leaving the Union. Let the traitors keep it.
Political correctness, raising its ugly head in this instance, is neither. It's simple ignorance, branded as enlightenment. But the real Enlightenment involved the triumph of reason over superstition. Don't like the design of a pair of sneakers? Then don't buy them.
51
Nike’s sentiments are good. But I’m offended that a symbol of our country is being co-opted by racists. A better strategy might be to give the shoe away for free to kids in inner city schools, as well as professional athletes who support the fight against racial inequality. If the Grand Wizard wants to wear a pair, then be my guest, and welcome to the side of true American values.
3
This sets a bad precedent. Canceling long established symbols and flags due to the fringe using them in some events.
What if these groups try to appropriate other flags like the Rainbow Flag in order to troll the media and the left?
9
I have seen African Union flags flown at many anti-racist protests. My local Trader Joe's has that flag hanging in the store. I was told the logic is that there is a black church a few blocks away and that the neighborhood had been predominantly black in the 70s. Slavery is still rampant on that continent as it is in many countries including Bahrain, India, UAE, China and many others. Any reason flying the flags of countries currently practicing slavery doesn't offend the same people?
7
"Torching the past" is not "passing the torch".
The disgraceful co-opting of the Betsy Ross flag by the KKK and other far-right groups does not represent the symbolism of that flag for George Washington, who commissioned it, or for those that fought for it. The misappropriation of a name by "The Federalist Society" does not mean that their authoritarian distortions replace the far-ranging debate in "The Federalist Papers" to determine the fairest system of government in an imperfect world that made our Constitution and our democracy possible and launched a nation that, in its evolution, experienced both extraordinary success and dreadful failure in defining and implementing the ideals of its founding.
Cultivation theory recognizes the phenomenon that the false portrayal of events on television (as well as in social media) can actually become the reality for those who heavily consume such media.
We should not replace the history of events with contrived confabulation. We need to learn from both our successes and our failures, facing all of our history rather than suppressing what is inconvenient at the time. We shouldn't ditch Betsy Ross, or demolish Independence Hall, or even change the name of the Philadelphia 76ers, because obliterating the touchstones of our accomplishments will not mitigate or correct the serious flaws in their implementation.
Colin Kaepenick (and Nike) may have made a mistake here, but that need not diminish all he has achieved.
13
While I have supported Kaepernick up to this point....this is really kind of stretching it. Is this really the most practical, best use of his platform at the moment? A better target of criticism of Nike would be the fact that these shoes are made using almost-slave labor and are sold at an outrageously expensive price, none of the profit going to the benefit of the workers.
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@PubliusMaximus
THE child slave labor pays for his gazillion dollar contract. That’s why.
5
@Me And somehow, I doubt that we'll hear condemnation of this by the so-eloquent and righteous Kamala Harris.
3
@Me They've been using slave labor for a long, long time before Kaepernick was even born. So don't try to pin this on him specifically. I see what you're trying to do.
This is a story that catches fire because the headline sounds so outrageous, but makes more sense if you hang around to read the details before leaping to judgement.
- Kaepernick privately criticized the decision to Nike. Privately. Someone else leaked that. He has a right to his opinion and it sounds like he expressed it in a very contained way.
- The article gives 3-4 examples of how the Betsy Ross flag has recently been used as a hate symbol... it’s become one of those insider codes. If it's being used in this way, this sadly may not be the right time for those shoes. The real villain isn't Kap but these people who repurpose collective symbols into hate symbols, similar to how they did with Scandinavian runes.
15
@BCBC
If the flag was used as a hate symbol when the flag originated, then I would agree with you. But the fact that is may be used by a few as a hate symbol now is a different matter. It would only be relevant if it was used by Nike as a hate symbol.
What if a hate group used a representation of the 10 commandments tablet, or of the Constitution? Would you condemn all representations of them by anyone for any purpose?
16
Yeah @Errol, that’s a good counterpoint too.
In a way acknowledging this racist use of the Betsy Ross flag by discontinuing the shoes can legitimize the racist meaning. Like, before racist use of that flag was an obscure sub-culture’s inside code, and now we all know about it. Now, it’s like the dominant culture has acknowledged the racist meaning and has entered into a kind of cultural conversation with racists who use it that way. By reproducing the racism meaning to negate it, its existence is confirmed. That’s a definite downside.
I take your point. I think in this case the shoes still shouldn’t be made because these white nationalists are really here, and seem to be having a resurgence in society. I think we can’t ignore them. But going forward I’ll be thinking on what happens if we continue to cede symbols to them and allow them to define the debate and poison more of our shared culture. Thanks for your ideas.
2
I didn't have any problem at all with Kaepernick's kneeling during the anthem. I don't have an issue with people burning the flag. If anything qualifies as protected free speech, such things do, IMO.
However, let's not hand over iconic and historic images to some crazy fringe groups, just to be PC. The 13 star flag is unarguably part of our history. So everything that was American before the Emancipation Proclamation is racist? That's really nonsensical.
While slavery was a shameful part of our history, I for one don't see the 13-star flag as a depiction of it. Making an issue over these shoes is really taking political correctness to a ridiculous extreme. And Nike pulling them is a needless cave-in, as there were so many good arguments as to why they were not promoting fringe white-nationalism. Seriously, why would they?
Kaeprinick is a good, but not a great, football quarterback. Maybe it's because he just doesn't know when/how to pick his battles ("coverages") on the field? This was certainly a wrong-headed battle to pick off the field, IMHO. Unless, of course, it was all about keeping his name in the papers. In which case the old "no such thing as bad publicity" has been well orchestrated. I'm hoping it was just bad judgment.
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@Brian W.
"Unless, of course, it was all about keeping his name in the papers. In which case the old "no such thing as bad publicity" has been well orchestrated. "
That was my immediate thought when I read about this. Publicity.
Wait -- Arizona's Republican governor is pulling funding for a factory that would have employed 500 people in that state because Nike *didn't* release a particular product? Was it required to?
12
@ChicagoMaize
Nike has plenty of money to fund its own factories. They're not owed anything from the state. If they want to play politics with our flag they can accept the consequences.
3
@ChicagoMaize. I guess you ignored the tax breaks they would have gotten.
@ChicagoMaize
Arizona is a red state. The guvs action will play well in most counties.
1
My usual recognition of the July 4th holiday is to display two small American flags at the front entrance to the house. Do I need permission to continue to do such? And if so, whom do I ask for such permission? Kaepernick? Has he delegated that authority to others to meet possible demand?
90
@BD
No, you must ask Governor Ducey of Arizona. He'll let you know what you can and can't do with your own company.
2
I wrote my MA thesis on Betsy Ross. The most interesting thing about her is that she has been made to stand for women both as progressive figure (during the early 20th century fight for national suffrage) and as an example of limiting women to the domestic sphere in the 60s and 70s. Her erasure historically has always been led by people like Mr. Reed who never did his homework on the American flag. The flag was never "objectively meant to stand for" anything other than American property. The fight over what it is emotionally meant to stand for is what is happening now and what has always happened when Americans fight over what it means to be an American.
Objectively Ross existed. Objectively she married 3 military men and was widowed three times. Objectively her story did not become popular until after the Civil War. Nike can do what it wants. What they are doing now is allowing racists to make the Ross flag a symbol of their ideology. The bigger lesson is that their is no foundational meaning to the American flag. It is, and has always been, part of the argument.
15
@Southern
there "is no foundational meaning to the American flag." Huh? I thought it stood for the concepts embodied in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Must have missed something.
3
Kaepernick and the management of Nike, should now be, if they are not already, the darlings of the falsely self-called "progressive" left. Kaepernick and others are offended by the flag because it dates to the late 18th century, a period of widespread slavery in the United States, and they presumably claim is reminiscent thereof.
Kaepernick is correct that the flag dates to that period in history. But so also does the US Constitution itself date to that historical period, including its first 10 Amendments, the Bill of Rights, THE very source of our individual liberty that protects our freedom from the danger of minority persecution that democracy poses. Apparently Kaepernick and Nike want the Constitution and the Bill of Rights ignored and forgotten, too.
This time Kaepernick and Nike have gone way too far. I hope Nike suffers enormous loss of sales as a result. And I hope Kaepernick is shunned by everyone but his leftist admirers. I seldom praise anything that Arizona politicians do, but cancelling the government subsidies previously awarded to Nike is a wonderful response (such subsidies should never be given to any company in the first place).
140
I am mostly glad they are not spending our tax money on a low pay center for Nike on the west side. Arizona also passed a law recognizing out-of-state license, so if you move here, you can start working, which will bring more good than 500 Nike facility jobs.
Arizona has an issue. It is called 250+ people moving here a day. We have the fastest growing county in the USA. The governor can get away with this because the state is doing so well.
"I canceled my trip to the Grand Canyon!".
We receive 43 million people and $22,000,000,00 in tourism dollars a year with an insane winter market. Again, virtue signaling does not do much here. Everyone from NYC at our company is out here as much as possible from sept to march, renting a 5 star fairmont for our company meetings.
6
I hope to read more stories like this over the next year. These examples of extreme political correctness will lead to the re-election of President Trump.
132
@Sue Why though? This is a corporation doing what it wants. No one is saying YOU can't have the Betsy Ross flag; Nike is simply choosing not to put it on a sneaker, which in any case, would violate the flag code.
17
@A Reader - I completely agree. Nike can do whatever it wants. But it will be perceived by conservatives and more importantly, moderates as political correctness run amok. Things like this play into Trump’s hands.
56
Nike is "simply" not choosing to put a flag on a sneaker because Kaepernick all-of-a-sudden decided that the flag was a racist icon?
Simply? What is "simple" about this, especially when someone arbitrarily decides that the flag icon is racist and Nike caves in automatically?
And, no you can't have the Betsy Ross shoe because it is unavailable.
10
Interesting that republicans champion free markets, but then get mad at a private, for-profit company that made a business decision. I would guess that Nike looked at their target market, and realized they had not thought through the impact the flag image would have on their customers and sales of their products. Sounds like a reasonable business decision (even if it makes you angry at them) - they are maximizing profits, in a free market economy.
Ducey seems to be saying that private enterprise should live up to his own personal standards for patriotism, in order to receive funds from the taxpayers of Arizona. What a hypocrite, on so many levels.
23
@D
I don't see how you could make the conclusion that people upset at Nike for this decision are against free markets. I don't see anyone asking from the government to step in and force Nike to bring back the shoe. Seems like a stretch to me.
10
@Sophos They kind of are. They want to dictate to Nike what products they should offer. Period. Nike isn't saying YOU can't own a Betsy Ross flag. They are choosing not to put it on their product (which by the way may violate the flag code).
7
@Sophos If people decided to boycott Nike for a particular product decision, that wouldn't have an effect on the freedom of the market, even if the boycott were successful. When the machinery of the state -- here, in the form of investment dollars withheld -- is applied solely because of a product decision, that does indeed fly in the face of free market ideals.
2
I suggest Kirkland (Costco) men's athletic shoe, white leather. $14.97. Put your own flag, or whatever, on it. Or not.
The human foot cares nothing for "fashion". The human brain, on the other hand....
Makes one wonder which part of the body is actually more evolved.
11
@Alan Dean Foster
The human foot cares nothing for CostCo sneakers, either.
Want to make a non-fashion argument for footwear choices? Maybe something ergonomic, scientifically engineered, or socially and environmentally conscious?
Your standards for a shoe are a) anti-fashion and b) cheap? Which part of your foot does that benefit exactly? Or is that just an appeal to your brain as well?
2
Obviously, Nike needs to be careful because it is selling absurdly overpriced gear to people who have been hoodwinked into using it as a status symbol. It needs to keep its exploitative machine humming along.
31
Buying a different brand because they are better made and lower price isn’t boycotting, it’s just common sense. Nike got rich by making cheap shoes in poor countries using slave labor and passing it off as a premium product. The irony is that Kaepernick sees a link between Betsy Ross and slavery, but misses the more obvious and current link between his benefactor and slavery.
6
I support Colin Kaepernick's kneeling to draw attention to the racial injustices still evident in this country, this however is just wrong and Nike is wrong in their action.
I had no idea the Betsy Ross flag was used by the KKK, but know the story/legend about it. Why would Nike and Kaepernick cede control over the 1777 flag, which represents our independence from the British, to racists groups? Seems to me both should be doubling down and embrace it as representing the fight for freedom and representation. Things I thought Kaepernick was concerned about.
540
@Janet2662,
You make an excellent point! God Bless!
22
@Janet2662 The KKK and other racist groups use the current American 50 star flag even more often.Base on Kaepernick's view ALL American flags are symbols of oppression and should be banned.
Kaepernick is pandering to one group of extremist as much as the KKK is pandering to another. Shame on them both. The rest of us should all fly the 13 star flag proudly.
52
@Janet2662 It's just over the top.
9
If the Betsy Ross flag has been co-opted by the KKK and other white supremacist groups, then it shouldn't be promoted by Nike. Why didn't they use the current flag? What was the reasoning?
6
@casablues Because they were honoring Independence Day 1776.
6
@casablues the current has been co-opted by racist groups as well. Should this flag not be promoted? What if the the peace symbol is co-opted by racist groups?
Were do we draw the line?
5
@casablues Don't you get it? July 4th? Independence day? Betsy Ross flag? Have we really become that historically illiterate? This flag has only been "co-opted" if regular people allow that to happen.
6
Cancel my trip to Arizona. I wonder what gets made there, too.
11
@Bill. I’m sure you had no trip planned.
2
One wonders if the GOP is behind this. This is a silly argument more offensive is the use of the American Flag as decoration. As many intelligent people have mentioned the 13 bars are also from the slave era. Stop being Trump America's tool Colin concentrate on really important things. There is real systematic discrimination in the US, that not this is important. Do not let yourself be used.
21
Flags shouldn't be used as clothing. In fact the flag shouldn't be trivialized into everyday decoration. A jerk wearing the red, white, and blue can too easily recast any backlash to his/her obnoxious behavior as disrespecting the flag.
It's like someone trying to wave a dirty flag in a hospital and gets kicked out, then complains that the doctors and nurses hate America.
19
I've bought my last pair of Nike sneakers! Left-wing fascism is on the march, be afraid. Shame on Nike and shame on the governor of Arizona.
46
@Dino I hope you’re even more outraged by the white supremacists who co-opted the flag for their “cause” in the first place. Seems reasonable that a company, upon learning about that, wouldn’t want to risk that association with racists since the market tends not to support (blatant) racism nowadays.
Symbols—for good or ill—take on different meanings over time. Knowing this flag’s current connotations, why would anyone but a proud racist want to wear it? Nike made a sales decision more than anything else.
6
Reasonable people cannot let the KKK expropriate Americana. These miscreants wear clothing, but I am not going to go around naked in protest.
Quite frankly, this is just bizarre, and Arizona isn't helping things.
53
Liberal are just committing suicide. This is the flag used at the beginning of this country. It stands for the Revolution and this country. If liberals and progressives hate this country this much then see what happens in 2020. Don Trump will win easily. That is not good. Please stop this! Maybe the left wing academics and many progressive readers of the Times love this approach to the flag and this country, but this is political suicide.
286
Why don’t you burn your own belongings about it? Oh you already did and weren’t planning on buying more Nike products, ever since Fox told you not to last time? Then explain to us what leverage you think you have over this situation.
2
@Gordon Wiggerhaus, Don't confuse Kaepernick and Nike for liberals and progressives in general. They hardly speak for the masses.
19
@Gordon Wiggerhaus
What approach? The free market -- Allowing private companies decide which products to take to market?
4
There's a lot to dislike about America's obsession with the flag, & I agree with Mr. Kapernick about much. But I'd rather he gave his attention to Nike's child labor practices than to this. This is about a symbol; the other is about real lives.
105
...except he wasn’t criticizing “obsession” with the flag. He was criticizing the flag as a symbol. Regardless of Nike’s labor practices, both he and Nike are wrong. They must be loudly condemned.
So a QB run out of the league now dictate what can and can not be on the back of a sneaker? Serious? And you wonder why people have turned to Trump.
191
If this makes you turn to Trump you were already lost. How many times do we have to say, we just don’t care about your right-wing outrage any more.
10
@Mattbk That's like leaving venue because you don't like the music and stepping directly into traffic.
9
I am sick of faux patriots creating false arguments about the flag. How we are supposed to treat the flag is codified, but politicians like Ducey choose to ignore it.
U.S. Code Title 4. FLAG AND SEAL, SEAT OF GOVERNMENT, AND THE STATES Chapter 1. THE FLAG Section 8. Respect for flag
Paragragh (i):
(i) The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever. It should not be embroidered on such articles as cushions or handkerchiefs and the like, printed or otherwise impressed on paper napkins or boxes or anything that is designed for temporary use and discard. Advertising signs should not be fastened to a staff or halyard from which the flag is flown.
76
@Dan Unless the article of clothing is made from an actual United States flag, there is no breach of flag etiquette, whatsoever.
11
@Dan Yes, these faux patriots are annoying and exhausting.
1
@Dan
You are attempting to change the issue somehow as a defense of Kaepernick and Nike for cancelling the Betsy Ross flag shoe. Your effort fails. All you have done is present a different and unrelated basis for criticizing Nike since Nike has now chosen instead to sell a shoe with the current flag on it (and presumably Kaepernick approves of Nike disrespecting the current flag)
3
Why doesn't Nike hire a less homogeneous design team?
Perhaps a person of color could've offered a different opinion about the flag before all this money, time and effort were spent.
Maybe Nike does have a diverse design team, but apparently they have no sense of history.
That's another problem with America - our history books are incomplete.
11
I think it's high time that Colin just moves to another country. Being so offended at obscure matters like this is mind-blowing.
In the Betsy Ross era, the USA might not have then been the country which it is now in terms of rights of all people, but the Founding Fathers established means for improvement and superb ideals for which to strive.
225
@Samantha Jane Bristol The KKK and Proud Boys and others are not obscure - they are operating with impunity now with their leader in the White House.
21
@casablues I agree with Samantha. The obscurity is not with who lives in the white house and what he believes, it's about whether most people would ever want the original flag to be associated with racists or racism. It's an obscure idea, which unfortunately Colin is popularizing to no one's benefit except for those of fringe, racist elements.
Why would you or anyone want that, especially considering that the actual ideals the flag represents--those of the enlightenment--now belong to a wide swath of people, including Colin--ideals which allow him to express his opinions on the flag?
Aren't those ideals a much, much more worthy meaning than those supposedly adopted by our fringe elements and by extension the president they purportedly support?
35
@Samantha Jane Bristol
A true American stands firm to fight for what is right and that which makes America a better country. A true American would not abandon this country and its fellow citizens when the going gets tough, when others tell him to get out and quit. Telling an American minority to "move to another country" sounds a lot like the racist shout "move back to your own country!"
10
The business questions that are not addressed in this article within the NYT Business section: Why should the public give free money to any commercial enterprise that reaps high profits? Could not these funds be better directed towards meeting the needs of those persons living within the state? When free money is given to companies, why are they not required to treat such as 'imputed income' like their employees do when provided with a company vehicle, moving expenses, etc.?
Irrationally, the public is quick to embrace corporate welfare and detest welfare to the individual. WHY?
48