Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell is learning that his freedom of speech is, in actuality, not so free. Crowell landed in hot water after posting a picture on Instagram amidst the police shootings that occurred last week. The picture was a drawing that depicted a man dressed in all black slitting the throat of a police officer and Crowell captioned it “Mood: They give police all types of weapons and they continuously choose to kill us…#Weak.” Immediately after posting the picture, Crowell took it down but it was too late…the public caught wind of it and he faced immediate backlash. (It should be noted that his post came after the shootings of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile but prior to the shooting of the police officers in Dallas).
The Browns spoke to Crowell, and he has since apologized, writing, “Last week was an emotional and difficult week as we saw extreme acts of violence against black men across our country as well as against police officers in Dallas. I posted an image to Instagram in the midst of that emotion that I shouldn’t have and immediately removed it. It was an extremely poor decision and I apologize for that mistake and for offending people.” The Browns and the NFL also released statements about Crowell’s post, saying that it was inappropriate but they recognized that he had apologized for it. The Browns went even further, saying that they were disappointed in his actions and that they hoped Crowell would do more to “make a positive difference after a very negative and impactful post”.
However, some fans, as well as police, are not happy with Crowell and his written apology. Fans have called for the Browns to cut Crowell, and in the latest developments, Cleveland police have threatened to stop working at the Browns stadium during games. The president of the Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association, Stephen Loomis, says the drawing is “offensive as putting a picture of historical African-American men being hung from a tree in the 60s.” Loomis demands that Crowell donate to the families of the Dallas police officers that were killed and that he personally apologize to them. Otherwise, he says, “I will pull Cleveland officers, sheriffs, state troopers out of First Energy Stadium this season if he doesn’t make it right.” Loomis went on to further attack Crowell, saying, “You’re a grown-ass man, and you claim you were too emotional to know it was wrong? Think we’ll accept your apology? Kiss my ass.”
Crowell has since decided to take it a step further by making a massive donation to the police force. Crowell will donate his entire first game’s check to the Dallas Fallen Officer Foundation, which supports families of officers killed in the line of duty. Since he’s making $600k this season, the check will be around $37,500.
Discover more from Baller Alert
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
