Stephen Jackson defends DeSean Jackson's anti-Semitic posts: 'He's speaking the truth'
The wide receiver found some support
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Stephen Jackson, a former NBA player who was among the leaders calling for the Minneapolis police officers involved in George Floyd’s death to be arrested, appeared to support DeSean Jackson’s anti-Semitic social media posts Tuesday.
In a video posted to his own Instagram account, Stephen Jackson came to the Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver’s defense and said that DeSean Jackson was speaking the truth when he posted a quote falsely attributed to Adolf Hitler and then commented favorably on anti-Semitic preacher Louis Farrakhan.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“I just read a statement that the Philadelphia Eagles posted regarding DeSean Jackson’s comments. He was trying to educate people, educate himself, and he’s speaking the truth. Right? He’s speaking the truth. He don’t hate nobody but he’s speaking the truth of what he knows and trying to educate others. But y’all don’t want him to educate ourselves,” Stephen Jackson said.
“If it’s talking about the Black race, y’all don’t know nothing about it. If they’re killing us — police killing us — and treating us like s—t, racism at an all-time high, but none of y’all NFL owners spoke up on that. None of you teams spoke up on that. But the same team had a receiver say the word n----r publicly, and they gave him an extension. I play for the Big 3. We have a Jewish owner. He understands where we stand and some of the things we say, but it’s not directed to him. It’s the way we’ve been treated. Philadelphia, y’all need to repost this.”
WARNING EXPLETIVE LANGUAGE
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The receiver Stephen Jackson was referring to Riley Cooper, who was caught on camera saying the N-word in 2013. He received a five-year extension during the 2014 offseason but was later released in 2016.
DeSean Jackson apologized twice on Tuesday. His second apology was more directed to the Jewish community and the owner and general manager of the team, who are both Jewish.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“I want to apologize to the Jewish community, Jeffrey Lurie, Howie Roseman, Doug Pederson, the Eagles organization and our fans for the insensitive and ill-informed posts that I shared on my social media,” Jackson wrote. “My intention was to uplift, unite, and encourage our culture with positivity and light. Unfortunately, that did not happen.”
He added: “I unintentionally hurt the Jewish community in the process and for that I am sorry! Now, more than ever, we must work together to end discrimination of all types and against all people and communities. This apology is more than just words -- it is a promise to do better. I will fully educate myself and work with local and national organizations to be more informed and make a difference in our community.
“I will consider my words and actions moving forward,” Jackson continued. “I will seek out voices from other communities and listen to their words, thoughts, and beliefs. In a time of division, I am committed to doing my part in making this world a better place for our children.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WHY DESEAN JACKSON'S ANTI-SEMITIC POSTS COULD COST HIM MILLIONS
He also posted a video on Instagram apologizing.
The Eagles have not announced any discipline in the matter. And if DeSean Jackson does get cut, it’s likely going to be for cap reasons rather than the posts. He only played in three games last season and is expected to make $8.6 million this season.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In his controversial post over the weekend, DeSean Jackson promoted quotes attributed to Hitler and praised Farrakhan.
A passage highlighted and posted in his Instagram Stories read: “Hitler said, ‘because the white Jews knows [sic] that the Negros are the real Children of Israel and to keep Americas secret the Jews will black mail America.
‘[They] will extort America, their pan to world domination won’t work if the Negroes know who they were.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}‘The white citizens of America will be terrified to know that all this time they’ve been mistreating and discriminating and lynching Children of Israel.’”
The Philly Voice noted that the passage appears to be from the book “Jerusalem,” which attributed the quote to “The Nazis World War II.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jackson then posted two pictures of noted anti-Semitic preacher Louis Farrakhan.
In one caption, Jackson wrote: “This man powerful I hope everyone got a chance to watch this !! Don’t be blinded. Know what’s going on.”
He also posted a quote-picture attributed to Farrakhan, which read: “There must be 100% change… There’s a burden the Earth is carrying that it must be relieved from. The Earth is burdened by the wicked living on a planet that was made for the righteous.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Before his apologies, DeSean Jackson defended himself against claims of anti-Semitism, saying, “Anyone who feels I have hate towards the Jewish community took my post the wrong way I have no hatred in my heart towards no one!! Equality Equality.”
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All posts have since disappeared from his social media accounts.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News' Dan Canova contributed to this report.