Texans star launches personal attack on Trump over kneeling: 'Too closed-minded' to understand
Houston Texans wideout DeAndre Hopkins made an attempt Thursday to clarify the purpose of NFL players’ national anthem protests as a statement for civil rights and against perceived police racism.
He also took one mother of a shot at President Donald Trump in the process.
Speaking to TMZ, Hopkins claimed the president is “too closed-minded” to listen to the players and try to understand their message.
“I think Trump is more closed-minded and he thinks the reason that we’re kneeling is because of the flag, when that’s, like, not at all the reason we’re kneeling,” Hopkins said.
He went on to explain himself further.
“I kneeled last year and one of my best friends is a Purple Heart veteran and my uncle is a Purple Heart veteran, and they understand that it’s not about the flag,” Hopkins said.
“But when a general person like that makes it look like, ‘Alright, they’re doing this because of the flag,’ then of course his followers are going to think the same,” he continued. “But that’s not the case at all, you know?”
(Warning: Video contains language that some might find offensive.)
The president recently extended an olive branch to the protesters, asking them for suggestions for who should be pardoned or have their sentences commuted.
TMZ asked Hopkins if he had any names in mind for Trump to pardon.
“Man, s—, go to the hood, man, everybody treated unfair, you know what I’m saying?” he said. “The economy is not equal, you know what I mean? The school level, the system is not the best.”
Hopkins said he didn’t think any players would take the president up on his offer.
One group of current and former NFL players said Trump missed the point entirely.
“[A] handful of pardons will not address the sort of systemic injustice that N.F.L. players have been protesting,” the players wrote in an Op-Ed published June 21 by The New York Times. “These are problems that our government has created, many of which occur at the local level. If President Trump thinks he can end these injustices if we deliver him a few names, he hasn’t been listening to us.”
Doug Baldwin, Malcolm Jenkins, Benjamin Watson and Anquan Boldin, representing the Players Coalition activist group, signed the Op-Ed.
The NFL recently decided to change its national anthem policy in response to the protests.
Under the new rules, players are allowed to stay in the locker room during the playing of the anthem, but those who come onto the field are required to stand; kneeling or other forms of protest are strictly verboten.
Hopkins said he believes players will defy the rule and continue to take a knee during the upcoming season.
The NFL is authorized to fine teams that violate the policy. In addition, teams are allowed a good bit of leeway to implement policies and rules of workplace conduct beyond the minimum required by the league.
Some owners have already said they will pay the fines rather than allow their players to be disciplined under the new rule.
To them, Hopkins said, “I’ve seen a couple owners that said they would pay for the fine, so respect to those owners that said they would pay for our fines because they understand why we’re kneeling.”
The owner of Hopkins’ team, Bob McNair, isn’t one of them. McNair has been a strong critic of the anthem protests.
If the All-Pro wideout decides to take a knee, any fine he gets surely will come out of his own paycheck.
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