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  • 2018-09-14 (xsd:date)
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  • Does Nike Make Shoes Featuring the 'All-Seeing Eye' Symbol? (en)
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  • Many of the calls to boycott Nike in September 2018 centered on the idea that the apparel company was disrespecting the United States by featuring Colin Kaepernick, one of the most prominent football players to kneel in protest against police brutality and racial inequality during the performance of the national anthem before NFL games, in their latest ad campaign. By week two of this controversy, however, some social users media were seeking out inventive new reasons to avoid the swoosh. In mid-September 2018, an image purportedly showing an alarming Illuminati symbol on the pull-tab of a Nike sneaker started circulating on social media, along with the claim that the company had officially embraced satanism: This is a genuine product sold by Nike. However, it is not evidence that the company has embraced satanism, and the designer of the shoe might push back on claims that this is an Illuminati symbol. This symbol is indeed an element of Nike's Kyrie 4, NBA player Kyrie Irving's Signature Sneaker line, and is featured on a number of product shots via the official Nike website: According to shoe designer Benjamin Nethongkome, the symbol featured on these shoes is an all-seeing eye, a symbol has been associated with a number of different groups throughout history. Also known as the Eye of Providence, this symbol has been used to represent God's omnipresence and is also often used in reference to the Illuminati, a secret society at the heart of several conspiracy theories. It's also part of the design used on the reverse of the U.S. $1 bill: Nethongkome explained why he chose to utilize that symbol in a December 2017 interview with Bleacher Report published around the time that the Kyrie 4 line was released: This philosophy seems to falls in line with Kyrie Irving's view of the world. The Celtic point guard has tinkered with conspiracy theories in the past and has stated on at least one occasion that the earth is flat. When pressed about these ideas, however, Irving always seems to segue into the argument that he just wants people to think for themselves: The symbol showcased on these Nike shoes is not evidence that the company has officially embraced satanism. Rather, these images show that the company has embraced an NBA star who expresses some odd (and false) ideas about the universe. (en)
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