Marine veteran on Chris Pratt shirt criticism: 'Ignorant white supremacists' will never own the Gadsden flag
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Marine veteran Joey Jones delivered a powerful response Thursday to anyone criticizing actor Chris Pratt for wearing an American flag shirt with the "Don't Tread on Me" symbol on the front.
Earlier this week, a Yahoo Movies UK article - which was later amended after being heavily criticized - was titled "Chris Pratt criticized for 'white supremacist' T-shirt." The article referenced a small number of people who criticized Pratt's shirt, which displayed the Gadsden flag, a symbol used by the U.S. military that dates back to the American Revolution.
Responding on "Fox & Friends," retired U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Joey Jones, who lost his legs in a 2010 bombing in Afghanistan, said "ignorant white supremacists" should never be allowed to usurp the flag's meaning.
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He said he has a tattoo of the Gadsen flag on his arm, like many U.S. service members, and he's "incredibly proud" of what it means to the U.S. Marine Corps.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The KKK doesn't own the color white. The Nazis didn't own the colors red and black. There are symbols and colors and small things in our lives that are used for different things. If a group of ignorant white supremacists want to take a flag and fly it, I fully, wholeheartedly condemn them, but they're not gonna get my flag," he said.
"The Gadsden flag means something to me. It doesn't mean anything about hate, it means liberty."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jones said he just a got a new tattoo of the Betsy Ross flag in response to Nike pulling a sneaker which was supposed to feature the early version of Old Glory.
Colin Kaepernick objected to the shoe's design, arguing the flag was used during the era of slavery.
"As far as Colin goes, I'm willing to have a conversation with him, but not so long as he's trying to divide our country," said Jones.
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