Vice President Mike Pence is being called out for honoring Martin Luther King Jr. on Monday just months after he walked out of an NFL game where players of color protested police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem.
Pence, joining a chorus of other politicians, tweeted on Monday morning after visiting the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial in Washington D.C. that America should “rededicate ourselves” to King’s causes.
“Today we remember the legacy of MLK Jr. His memorial stands tall, but the real memorial to Dr. King resides in the hearts of all who strive for a more perfect union. To honor him, let’s rededicate ourselves to the cause Dr. King selflessly advanced, that all men are created equal.”
Today we remember the legacy of MLK Jr. His memorial stands tall, but the real memorial to Dr. King resides in the hearts of all who strive for a more perfect union. To honor him, let's rededicate ourselves to the cause Dr. King selflessly advanced, that all men are created equal pic.twitter.com/2gDuZfQmfC
— Vice President Mike Pence Archived (@VP45) January 15, 2018
However, Twitter was quick to point out that Pence has a spotty history when it comes to treating people equally.
In October, Pence walked out of an NFL game between the San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts amid President Donald Trump‘s tirades against players kneeling during the national anthem.
The irony of Pence tweeting about King’s “cause” while saying he wouldn’t “dignify” the NFL protest last year was not lost on people–not to mention his record against LGBTQ Americans.
Unless you're gay and then Mike Pence thinks you're less than him. Or you're a nonviolent black athlete who protests. Or a woman alone in a room. Or someone from the poor working class. https://t.co/l5uBgHS0uf
— De'Ante (@Destined_Legacy) January 15, 2018
You angrily walked out of a Colts game because NFL players were protesting for equality. https://t.co/DIpBBMuByO
— Melissa Jacobs 💙 (@thefootballgirl) January 15, 2018
https://twitter.com/jacobbendicksen/status/952939312697528320
https://twitter.com/PrairieChzhead/status/952939467018522624
Unless you're gay, or black, isn't that right Mike? https://t.co/rEfkbL5Cy9
— Paul Sacque (@PaulSacque) January 15, 2018
hey remember when you walked out of a football game because black athletes were protesting police brutality
— hunter (@hunrstan) January 15, 2018
NFL players started kneeling after quarterback Colin Kaepernick began the movement in August 2016, saying he wasn’t “going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.”