Philadelphia Eagles big catcher DeSean Jackson apologized for sharing a quote made by Adolf Hitler and other anti-Semitic writings to his Instagram story and now an NFL star wants to help educate him on the subject. New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman, who is Jewish, offered to take Jackson to visit the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, in a video posted on social media Thursday. Edelman tweeted Friday morning that he had spoken with Jackson and that they planned to “use our experiences to educate each other and grow together. Stay tuned.”
Before explaining the offer on Thursday, Edelman expressed his feelings about the situation involving Jackson.
“There is no room for anti-Semitism in this world. Even if we are talking about anti-Semitism, I don’t want to distract from the importance of the Black Lives Matter movement and the way we have to stay behind”, Edelman told me. “I think the black and Jewish communities have a lot of similarities. A regrettable similarity is that they are both attacked by the ignorant and the haters.”
Edelman, while noting that he respects what Jackson is capable of doing on the football field, then admitted that the Instagram posts were “ugly things”.
“It is really hard to see the challenges that a community can face when you are not part of it, so what we have to do is: we have to listen, we have to learn, we have to act. We have to have these difficulties comfortable conversations, if we really want to change, “Edelman continued. “So, to that end, DeSean, let’s make a deal: how about going to DC and I take you to the Holocaust Museum, then you take me to the Museum of Afro History and Culture- American. Then we take hamburgers and we have these uncomfortable conversations. This world needs a little more love, compassion and empathy. “
In the video, Edelman also touched on his Jewish heritage and revealed that he had heard an anti-Semitic comment made against him during an NFL game in 2011.
“I am proud of my Jewish heritage; for me it is not just a matter of religion,” said Edelman. “It is also a matter of community and culture. I am unusual, because I did not identify myself as a Jew until later in my life. Whenever I encountered hatred, I never really It felt like it was meant for me. It was only after I was part of this community that I learned how destructive hate is. Anti-Semitism is one of the oldest forms of hatred. It is ingrained in ignorance and fear. I remember living with that hatred a bit in 2011 when I was called a k– – on the football field. “
Jackson originally posted two different photos with positive remarks about Louis Farrakhan – who has been identified as anti-Semitic by the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center – as well as photos on his news feed of a quote that he attributed to Hitler, in which “white Jews” are accused of trying to “blackmail America”.
Jackson apologized Tuesday for the positions and it is not clear if the team will seek to impose some type of discipline on him.
