A Las Vegas Raiders helmet. Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Las Vegas Raiders draw criticism for insensitive George Floyd social media post

Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Vincent Frank | Last updated 4/21/21

On Tuesday, former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was convicted by jurors of murdering an African-American man by the name of George Floyd last May.

After deliberating for less than 24 hours, the jurors found Chauvin guilty of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and manslaughter. It wasn’t a surprising verdict after the man was seen kneeling on Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes, resulting in his death.

Following the verdict, those around the sports world had their reactions . That included the Las Vegas Raiders sending out the most unfortunate of tweets.

pic.twitter.com/eeWbMYHK3U
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) April 20, 2021

While seemingly well intentioned, there’s levels of ignorance to this social media post. Unless you have been hiding under a rock for the past several years, you know that a black man by the name of Eric Garner was heard saying “I can’t breathe” as he was killed by a New York City police officer back in 2014. The term has since help define the Black Lives Matter movement.

For many, Tuesday’s verdict in the Chauvin murder trial brought about long-awaited justice, or at least some accountability. However, it does not cure all the ills that got the country to this point. One verdict won’t do that. Needless to say, a lot of people had reactions to the Raiders’ tweet.

This is real???? Nah man this ain’t it at all. The F^%K!!!! ‍♂️ https://t.co/f44D7OQWfo
— LeBron James (@KingJames) April 21, 2021

They Could’ve said anything else . This is not a sigh of relief. That wasn’t justice, it was a accountability. This is so disrespectful! https://t.co/tg7UoFEehM
— AJ Brown (@1kalwaysopen_) April 21, 2021

Who thought this was a good idea though?! https://t.co/U9hiadnDt8
— Jamal Crawford (@JCrossover) April 21, 2021

Been coaching little league baseball all evening, but I need a 30 for 30 on the Raiders sending this Tweet. How many people were involved? What other Tweets did they consider and reject? I want the entire story here. https://t.co/o3UniEHvoM
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) April 21, 2021

Take this bs down https://t.co/SxoJmmuBkw
— Roger Mason Jr (@MoneyMase) April 21, 2021

I keep double checking to see if the @Raiders verified account actually tweeted this. https://t.co/xeXVwKSAER
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) April 20, 2021

Good intentions but another embarrassing day for the organization. https://t.co/flv0zNqrnT
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) April 21, 2021

This is the worst take I’ve seen in a very long time, and that’s saying something.

Everyone involved in this has some serious reflection and learning to do. https://t.co/pOLsAwvLut
— Alex Whitcomb (@AlexWhitcomb) April 21, 2021

After the aforementioned push back, Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis took responsibility for the social media post.

“That’s my tweet. That was me,” Davis said to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “I don’t want anyone in the organization taking heat. I take full responsibility for that.”

The post remains up nearly 12 hours after it was initially sent.

This article first appeared on Sportsnaut and was syndicated with permission.

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