The U.S. Navy has announced that it is investigating an event held by the Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida, last year where a man was seen wearing a Colin Kaepernick jersey while being attacked by dogs and arrested by soldiers as part of a demonstration.
A video of the January 2019 fundraiser was posted to Instagram last year and deleted, but it racked up nearly 6 million views when it was reposted on Twitter this weekend by filmmaker Billy Corben.
In a statement posted to Twitter, the Navy said it only became aware of the video on Sunday.
"In the demonstration, the target is wearing a Colin Kaepernick jersey. The inherent message of this video is completely inconsistent with the values and ethos of Naval Special Warfare and the U.S. Navy. We are investigating the matter fully, and initial indications are that there were no active duty Navy personnel or equipment involved with this independent organization's event," the statement read.
https://t.co/c2Rtf9dARW
pic.twitter.com/Crgj5r1VtC— US Navy SEALs (@us_navyseals) August 2, 2020
The statement was posted as a response to Corben's post, which included two videos of dogs and soldiers attacking the man wearing the Kaepernick jersey.
In another video, after “Navy SEALs and Navy SEAL dogs take down Colin Kaepernick for not standing during National Anthem,” he moans something like, "Oh man, I will stand” #BecauseFlorida
https://t.co/uZ3ervZguB
pic.twitter.com/6vi1uCGIt5— Billy Corben (@BillyCorben) August 2, 2020
As the person wearing the Kaepernick jersey is arrested by soldiers, he jokes that he will "stand," in reference to the former quarterback's kneeling protest that took place during the national anthem.
“Oh, man, I will stand," the person said in the video, which the crowd responded to with laughter.
Despite getting the inspiration to kneel during the anthem from U.S. soldiers like Nate Boyer, Kaepernick's protest against police brutality and racism was turned into a debate over respect for the military and the American flag.
President Donald Trump pounced on the issue and used it to inflame tensions, calling Kaepernick a "son of a b***h" and demanding he be kicked out of the league. Kaepernick led the San Francisco 49ers to two NFC title games and one Super Bowl but never played in the NFL after his protests, eventually suing and settling a collusion grievance against the league.
Following the nationwide protests over racism and police brutality after the killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell apologized to those who knelt during the national anthem.
Kaepernick's kneeling protest has grown in popularity, with entire NBA and MLB teams kneeling during the national anthem ahead of games over the last two months.