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Amid NFL Controversy, Packers Star Shares Notorious Anti-Semite's Conspiratorial Content

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Another NFL athlete was caught this week sharing content from Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan on social media.

A screen shot posted to Twitter revealed that Green Bay Packers linebacker Preston Smith recently shared video from the controversial Muslim minister’s July 4 address via his Instagram story.

The video featured Farrakhan forwarding widespread internet conspiracy theories regarding potential COVID-19 vaccines.

Seeming to stem from public distrust in the establishment experts and wealthy socialites responsible for funding and conducting much of the world’s medical research, those theories baselessly allege that coronavirus treatments currently in development will be intentionally poisoned to decrease global populations.

A longtime opponent of vaccination, the minister encouraged members of the international black community not to submit to medical treatment should a vaccine emerge.

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“I say to my brothers and sisters in Africa: If they come up with a vaccine, be careful,” Farrakhan said. “Don’t let them vaccinate you, with their history of treachery through vaccines, through medication.”

“I say to the African presidents: Do not take their medications. I say to those of us in America: We need to call a meeting of our skilled virologists, epidemiologists, students of biology and chemistry.”

“We need to give ourselves something better,” he added.

“They’re making money now, plotting to give seven billion, five hundred million people a vaccination. Dr. [Anthony] Fauci, Bill Gates and Melinda [Gates] — you want to depopulate the Earth. What the hell gives you that right? Who are you to sit down with your billions to talk about who can live, and who should die?”

Since 1977, Farrakhan has been at the helm of the NOI — an organization that even the liberal Southern Poverty Law Center classifies as a “hate group.”

Founded in 1930, the NOI has since grown to become one of the most well-known and well-funded black organizations in the United States, “offering numerous programs and events designed to uplift African Americans,” according to the SPLC. The group is also prolific in advocating for anti-Semitism and black superiority, however, with several of its leaders publicly spreading conspiracies about secret Jewish control of global politics or alleging that Caucasians are of the Devil.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, Farrakhan has never wavered in preaching to these points, having made a name for himself in the American political sphere as a hardline anti-Semite who frequently claims that Jews are responsible for the world’d “filth” and has even compared Jews to “termites.”

“The Jews were responsible for all of this filth and degenerate behavior that Hollywood is putting out: turning men into women, and women into men,” Farrakhan said in a February 2018 speech. “I don’t care what they put on me. The government is my enemy, the powerful Jews are my enemy.”

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“When they talk about Farrakhan, call me a hater, you know how they do — call me an anti-Semite,” Farrakhan said in another address to his followers later that year. “Stop it, I’m anti-termite.”

None of these remarks have prevented supposedly progressive American athletes from voicing support for Farrakhan, as Fox News reported.

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson caught heavy flak earlier this week for sharing a clip on Twitter of Farrakhan delivering his vaccination remarks.

“This man powerful I hope everyone got a chance to watch this !!” Jackson wrote. “Don’t be blinded. Know what’s going on.”

He also posted images which seemingly endorsed anti-Semitic quotes falsely attributed to genocidal 20th century Nazi German Chancellor Adolf Hitler.



NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, New Orleans Saints defensive back Malcolm Jenkins and fellow Eagle Malik Jackson, all of whom have been outspoken regarding the Black Lives Matter movement, were quick to defend or downplay the postings.

Do you think Smith should face job-related consequences for sharing this video?

Jenkins, for his part, told Instagram followers displeased with Jackson that they should stay “focused on what matters.

“Jewish people aren’t our problem, and we aren’t their problem,” Jenkins wrote Friday on Instagram. “Let’s not lose focus on what the problem truly is, and that’s that black lives still don’t matter in this country. Push this energy toward arresting and convicting the killers of Breonna Taylor and burning systemic racism to the ground.”

Still, Jackson did not manage to avoid the consequences of his actions, as he was penalized by Eagles ownership but not released by the organization. Details regarding the penalization have not been made public.

“We have had a number of constructive conversations over the last few days, not only with DeSean Jackson, but also with many other players, members of the organization, and leaders in the community,” the Eagles said in a statement Friday. “That has led us to the point where we and he are ready to take the next steps.

“Today we have penalized DeSean for conduct detrimental to the team. He accepted these consequences and apologized. In our many conversations with him, it has also been made clear that this is only the beginning. We have discussed a concrete plan for how we and he can heal moving forward. He understands that in order to remain on the team, he must also commit to supporting his words with actions,” the organization said.

“We have been encouraged by his desire to educate himself, but we all understand that there is still a lot of work to be done. We will continue to assist DeSean in this process, and we also know that all of us in our organization need to listen and learn more about things that are unfamiliar or uncomfortable to us.”

As of Saturday afternoon, the Packers had not yet publicly addressed Smith’s posting.

The Western Journal reached out to the Packers for comment, but did not received a response in time for publication.

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Andrew J. Sciascia was the supervising editor of features at The Western Journal. Having joined up as a regular contributor of opinion in 2018, he went on to cover the Barrett confirmation and 2020 presidential election for the outlet, regularly co-hosting its video podcast, "WJ Live," as well.
Andrew J. Sciascia was the supervising editor of features at The Western Journal and regularly co-hosted the outlet's video podcast, "WJ Live."

Sciascia first joined up with The Western Journal as a regular contributor of opinion in 2018, before graduating with a degree in criminal justice and political science from the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he served as editor-in-chief of the student newspaper and worked briefly as a political operative with the Massachusetts Republican Party.

He covered the Barrett confirmation and 2020 presidential election for The Western Journal. His work has also appeared in The Daily Caller.




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