Nike nixed a U.S.A.-themed sneaker after former NFL player Colin Kaepernick raised concerns about its offensive symbolism. The offensive symbol in question? The original American flag on the heel of the shoe, commonly referred to as the Betsy Ross flag.
The athletic company designed the Air Max 1 USA in celebration of Independence Day, but decided to pull it at the last minute without explaining why to retailers, according to the Wall Street Journal.
“Nike has chosen not to release the Air Max 1 Quick Strike Fourth of July as it featured the old version of the American flag,” a Nike spokeswoman said.
Kaepernick — a former athlete turned activist notorious for kneeling during the National Anthem — reportedly contacted Nike executives after images of the shoe were posted online. He told company officials that he and others found the Betsy Ross flag offensive because it was created in an era connected to slavery.
Of course, it’s ridiculous to argue the flag (or the national anthem, for that matter) is inherently a symbol of or connected to slavery. Yes, slavery existed in the colonies and in the early United States, but the flag — unlike, say, the Confederate flag — was never a symbol of rallying around slavery or white supremacy. Its purpose was to celebrate the American Revolution and the independence of the 13 colonies that would band together to guarantee freedom for future generations, including ours. If anything, the Betsy Ross flag is a nonideological reminder that, in America, the fight for freedom transcends our divisions. But Kaepernick, and the woke capitalist Nike executives that agreed with him, hijacked the flag to make it a debate over racial inequality and diversity.
If we’re going to argue that the Betsy Ross flag is representative of slavery, then what else would we have to ban that might potentially remind someone of the stains of America’s past. Should we also get rid of buses, which famously discriminated against black Americans during the Civil Rights era? What about sports, such as baseball, that excluded black Americans from joining the major leagues? Isn’t every game of baseball a reminder of that shameful chapter in our history?
How do we reconcile America’s sins with who we are today? Perhaps the answer is to look at symbols of wrongs done as symbols of future reconciliation. When you see a bus, see Rosa Parks making her great stand. Baseball? Remember Jackie Robinson, who broke the Major League Baseball’s color barrier. And when you see the Betsy Ross flag, celebrate the men and women who died to create a country that would one day become the freest and most diverse the world has ever seen. So free, in fact, that Kaepernick and those like him have the right to protest and fight against the things that represent the liberty we all enjoy.
It’s a shame Nike has fallen into the trap of corporate wokeness. The Betsy Ross flag is a great symbol — one that reminds Americans not only why we are free, but why we must protect that freedom for every American, including Kaepernick.
