A student from Belmont University in Tennessee has been expelled after posting threatening racist attacks on social media. Star safety Malcolm Jenkins, defensive end Steven Means and cornerback Ron Brooks of the Philadelphia Eagles all raised their fists during the national anthem to protest police brutality in Monday night’s game against the Chicago Bears. This showing of defiance angered Snapchat user juswoodward97 so much that he unleashed a torrent of slurs and said that they all deserve a “bullet in the head.”
Belmont University acted quickly and expelled the student, whose name has been withheld due to privacy reasons.
Belmont rejects comments rooted in racism or bigotry. See statement below. pic.twitter.com/xHvJKn5su5
— Belmont University (@BelmontUniv) September 20, 2016
Sitting, kneeling, or raising fists in solidarity during the national anthem was begun during the second preseason game by 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and is now being emulated by players on several teams. The vicious backlash from infuriated right-wingers decrying the “insult to the flag” highlights the fact that they are merely cloaking their racism with cheap nationalism. It’s gratifying to see that this kind of hateful vitriol isn’t being tolerated by Belmont University; with luck others will take a cue from their decisive response.