Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall was the first NFL player to take a knee during a regular-season national anthem, an action which cost him a pair of endorsements. Marshall said he planned to continue his protest throughout the season. While speaking to the Denver Post earlier this season, he noted that non-minorities inherently have a hard time understanding the struggles of minorities in this country.
“People that aren’t minorities, they don’t know what it’s like to be a minority in this country,” he said. “And I’m not saying it’s terrible. I love this country. We have great opportunities, but at the same time, if you’re not a minority you don’t understand. I speak for everybody when I say that, because I know they agree with me.”
This afternoon, Marshall posted photos of a letter that a fan sent him filled with racist epithets.
To read too much logic into this crazed rant would be to legitimize hate-filled drivel as coherent thought, but this letter, along with the endorsements Marshall lost, are good reminders that the argument which states athletes only take political stands to gain positive attention is a shaky one.
This afternoon, Marshall addressed the letter, which the sender disguised as a letter from a sixth-grade class.