NFL Superstar Wears Kaepernick Jersey, 'Make Africa Home Again' Hat After Game
The New Orleans Saints smashed the Washington Redskins on “Monday Night Football” this week, to the tune of a 43-19 drubbing.
The story of the game, however, was Saints quarterback Drew Brees. All he did was become the sole all-time leader in passing yards in NFL history. It’s an incredible feat for one of the NFL’s very best people.
But after the game? The story shifted dramatically when Brees’ All-Pro running back teammate, Alvin Kamara, had an… interesting choice for his post-game attire.
Alvin Kamara making a strong statement with his postgame fit 👀✊🏾 #GoSaints pic.twitter.com/fJphaV0dmL
— Yahoo Sports NFL (@YahooSportsNFL) October 9, 2018
Kamara, 23, burst onto the scene as a rookie running back last year, garnering both Pro Bowl and Second-Team All-Pro honors for the Saints.
Now that he’s entrenched as a bona fide NFL superstar, he seems a little more comfortable wading into politics.
The jersey Kamara was wearing is a almost self-explanatory. He was wearing a Colin Kaepernick’s #7 San Francisco 49ers jersey. Kaepernick came to national prominence, outside professional football, in 2016 by kicking off protests by players who took a knee for the national anthem. Many have construed Kaepernick’s actions as the ultimate disrespect for police officers and military members.
Clearly, Kamara firmly supports Kaepernick’s divisive rhetoric.
That, in and of itself, isn’t particularly confusing. As polarizing as Kaepernick is, he certainly has his fair share of supporters in the NFL.
What is a tad more confusing is Kamara’s hat. Clearly mocking President Donald Trump’s popular “Make America Great Again” hats, Kamara’s hat was emblazoned with “Make Africa Home Again” in the familiar white lettering against a red backdrop.
What does that even mean?
Is Kamara pushing for all black people to return to Africa? If Trump is as racist and xenophobic as many big-name pro athletes like to claim, wouldn’t that be giving Trump exactly what he wants?
Is Kamara pushing for America to colonize Africa? Doubtful, but the hat’s mocking message makes nothing clear.
Of note, Kamara has previously said that his mother is from Liberia, in West Africa.
While it’ll likely never be made public, it would be fascinating to see Kamara and Brees discuss the running back’s outfit choice. Remember, Brees has gone on record to say he is not a fan of anthem protests, which Kamara has tacitly approved of through his Kaepernick jersey.
“I will always feel that if you are an American, that the National Anthem is the opportunity for us all to stand up together, to be unified and to show respect for our country, to show respect for what it stands for, the birth of our nation,” Brees said in 2017.
“But if the protest becomes that we’re going to sit down or kneel or not show respect to the flag of the United States of America and everything that it symbolizes and everything that it stands for and everything that our country has been through to get to this point, I do not agree with that.”
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