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  • 2017-08-24 (xsd:date)
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  • Did NFL Player Isaiah Crowell Post an Image of a Police Officer Being Killed? (en)
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  • On 23 August 2017, the American Badass Facebook page posted a widely-shared message about Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell: The post was accompanied by a photograph of Crowell and a screenshot of an artist’s rendering of a hooded man cutting the throat of a police officer. We received several enquiries from readers wanting to know whether Crowell did, in fact, post this image to his Instagram account. He did, on 6 July 2016. He deleted the image after a few minutes and later apologized repeatedly, to the satisfaction of local police. There has been a certain amount of skepticism on social media about the story because the post is no longer on Crowell’s Instagram feed -- but that's because it was removed, not because it was never there. However, many took screenshots of the image, which Cromwell posted with the brief message: They give polices [sic] all types of weapons and they continuously choose to kill us. #Weak. On 11 July 2016, Crowell released the following apology via the Cleveland Browns and on his own Twitter account, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He explained that in the days leading up to the post, he had been emotional about the deaths of two black men: Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota. Crowell posted the image before five police officers were shot dead in Dallas, Texas, not afterwards. As of 24 August 2017, the apology is no longer on Crowell's Twitter account or on Cleveland Browns web site. We asked the club why the apology appears to have been removed, but did not receive a response in time for publication. According to the Plain Dealer, Crowell also posted a video apology to his Facebook account on 13 July 2016 -- which has also since been removed. However, the video is available on YouTube, where the Baby Baby account uploaded it on 13 July 2016: Crowell again cited his frustration and upset at police violence against black men, and again apologized for posting the image. Crowell also pledged to donate his first game check of the season ($35,294, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer) to the Dallas Fallen Officer Foundation. We asked the Cleveland Browns why this apology video is no longer viewable on Isaiah Crowell’s Facebook page, but we did not receive a response in time for publication. The next day, Crowell personally apologized to Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams, who told the press that the running back had been contrite and apologetic. The Cleveland Police Patrolmen’s Association (CPPA) rejected Crowell’s first apology and threatened to refuse to provide security at home games unless Crowell made a grand gesture of contrition. However, after Crowell’s follow-up video message and pledged donation, the CPPA accepted his apology. CPPA President Stephen Loomis said the group appreciated the running back’s video statement and that he had made things right. It's not entirely clear why this episode has been given renewed attention more than a year later, but it could be related to the start of a new NFL season, as well as particular focus on the Cleveland Browns, amid an ongoing controversy over the national anthem. On 21 August 2017, Crowell was one of 12 Browns players who knelt and prayed during the national anthem, rather than standing, before a preseason game against the New York Giants. (en)
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