New Mexico’s governor is backing Nike in its furor over its canceling a U.S.-flag themed sneaker as offensive.
On Tuesday, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey scrapped tax incentives his state had offered the sneaker giant to locate a plant there, calling the flag-sneaker cancellation “a shameful retreat … Nike has made its decision, and now we’re making ours.”
Enter Arizona’s eastern neighbor.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham retweeted Mr. Ducey’s denunciation of Nike and sent the firm an invitation to make a flag-free sneaker line in her state.
“Hey @Nike, let’s talk,” she wrote.
Hey @Nike, let’s talk. https://t.co/ULqupXdVSj
— Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (@GovMLG) July 2, 2019
Citing “people familiar with the matter,” the Wall Street Journal reported Monday that Nike cancelled the shoe — which had a U.S. flag with 13 stars on each heel, commonly called the “Betsy Ross flag” — after it had been teased on social media and some pre-shipments even made at the demand of former NFL player Colin Kaepernick.
Kaepernick told Nike that he and others consider the flag an offensive symbol of a slave society.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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