Boston Celtics’ Kemba Walker Sparks Controversy After Promoting ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ Message with Pregame Attire
Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Getty Images
Shortly before the Celtics began their 118-100 romp of the Washington Wizards, Boston’s star point guard Kemba Walker sparked controversy for wearing a bright-yellow jacket promoting “Don’t Tread on Me” as his pregame attire.
The Celtics official Twitter account shared photos of Walker wearing the Gadsden Flag on his back, but quickly deleted the post after the messaging was questioned.
The Celtics have apparently rethought this attempt to once again repurpose the Gadsden flag. pic.twitter.com/55d39TnqtW
— southpaw (@nycsouthpaw) May 19, 2021
Depicting a rattle snake with the words “Don’t Tread on Me” beneath it, the flag’s origin was meant to be anti-British and pro-revolution. Once a symbol of freedom, the flag’s message has been recently corrupted by far-right groups, with it being prominently displayed at the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol and by Charlottesville demonstrators in 2017.
After the Celtics-Wizards NBA Play-In game Tuesday night, Walker was reportedly asked about the controversial jacket. According to Jared Weiss, who covers Boston’s NBA team for The Athletic, Walker pleaded ignorance regarding the flag’s meaning and claimed he liked the jacket’s colors.
Kemba Walker was asked about wearing this jacket which has a flag associated with far-right politics. His answer made it pretty apparent he has no idea what it means, saying he liked the colors and the way it looked. No message meant by it. pic.twitter.com/BKSXFypFfr
— Jared Weiss (@JaredWeissNBA) May 19, 2021
Walker’s controversial attire is reminiscent of James Harden wearing a “Blue Lives Matter” face mask last summer when he arrived to the NBA’s restart in Orlando. Harden similarly said he wore the mask because he thought it looked cool and was unaware that he was portraying any potential political message.
James Harden: “It was something to cover my whole face, my beard…I thought it looked cool, that’s it.” #Rockets
— Alykhan Bijani (@Rockets_Insider) July 17, 2020
NBA players have frequently represented political and social messaging through their attire, even more so in the last 12 months. Part of the agreement to resume the 2020 NBA season in the Orlando bubble last July, was that players were going to be allowed to add social-justice messages to their jerseys. Walker finished out last season with “Love Us” embroidered on the back of his jersey.
