DeSean Jackson Apologizes For Controversial Post About Jewish Community; Philadelphia Eagles And NFL Respond: “Highly Inappropriate, Offensive And Divisive”

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeSean Jackson has apologized for posting a series of alleged anti-Semitic posts on Instagram.

Over the weekend, Jackson came under fire after posting a slew of offensive posts about the Jewish community. The 33-year-old posted a thread on his IG Stories, one spoke on the Black Jews of Israel. In it, Jackson’s post calls Black people “the real Children of Israel” and says that white Americans would be upset to find out that they have been “mistreating and discriminating and lynching” them, CNN reports. Some people in the Snopes forum said the passage has been coopted by people who claim Adolph Hitler was not racist.

Jackson apologized and later wrote that his original post was misinterpreted, but then in another post, he shared a section that references a Jewish plan to  “extort America” and achieve “world domination.” He also shared a clip from a speech made by Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, who has been called anti-Semitic. In the speech, Farrakhan accuses Dr. Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates of planning to “depopulate the Earth” using the coronavirus vaccine.

But Jackson apologized in a video that he posted on Instagram on Tuesday. “I just want to first off extend an apology on behalf of me, and what I stand for, because you know, I’m one that’s fair, and I never want to put any race down or any people down,” Jackson said. He added that he feels remorse for mentioning Hitler period. “I really didn’t realize what this passage was saying, Hitler has caused terrible pain to Jewish people like the pain African-Americans have suffered. We should be together fighting anti-Semitism and racism. This was a mistake to post this, and I truly apologize for posting it and sorry for any hurt I have caused,” said Jackson.

The Eagles wrote out a statement addressing Jackson’s posts. “Regardless of his intentions, the messages shared were offensive, harmful, and absolutely appalling,” the Eagles’ statement read. “They have no place in our society and are not condoned or supported in any way by the organization. We are disappointed, and we reiterated to DeSean the importance of not only apologizing, but also using his platform to take action to promote unity, equality, and respect.” The NFL also chimed in saying that “DeSean’s comments were highly inappropriate, offensive and divisive and stand in stark contrast to the NFL’s values of respect, equality, and inclusion.”