NewsNet5
BRUNSWICK – A Brunswick high school football player is taking a stand by sitting down.
Senior, Rodney Axson, took a knee during the national anthem during Brunswick’s last game. Axson says it followed a confrontation with his teammates for using racial slurs.
Axson said his teammates were using offensive language to describe the opposing team. Offended, Axson said he asked them to stop and said they ignored him.
Axson then followed NFL player Colin Kaepernick’s example and took a knee during the national anthem.
James Hardiman, the Vice President of Cleveland’s NAACP said the slurs that started in the locker room then quickly spread.
“The insults were then directed toward him. He was referred to using the n-word,” Hardiman told NewsChannel 5.
In a Snapchat photo, offensive language is used with Axson’s name, including the word “lynch.”
“We take that as a direct threat, against a person who should be enjoying senior year in high school,” Hardiman said.
The NAACP is investigating what happened.
“I hope officials in Brunswick take the opportunity to address what has the potential to be a volatile situation,” Hardiman said.
