Nike shares fall after company faces huge backlash after releasing a new ad campaign featuring controversial athlete Colin Kaepernick.
Nike shares suffered a massive 3.2% downfall on Tuesday after the company released a new ad campaign with Colin Kapernick. Social media erupted with a wave of reactions, both in favour and against of the campaign.
Colin Kapernick is one of the leading figures in American sports, especially after he decided not to stand for the national anthem as a mark of protest against racism in the United States. His action received mixed response from the Americans, with current president Donald Trump posting a series of tweets criticising Kapernick.
Nike released their new ad campaign with Colin Kaepernick, as well as many other athletes, which also include Serena Williams and Lebron James. Kapernick posted a picture of the campaign on his Twitter account.
Kaepernick wrote, “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt.”
The tweet received many reactions on the social media platform, and while some supported him, many other reacted against the campaign. #BoycottNike and #BurnItAll soon began to trend on Twitter.
Kapernick has been a Nike-sponsored athlete since 2011, and played for San Francisco 49ers at the time as a quarter-back. He is currently without a club contract.
The National Football League (NFL), didn’t directly address Nike’s ad with Kaepernick, but issued a statement on the issues which the athlete raised.
“The social justice issues that Colin and other professional athletes have raised deserve our attention and action. … We embrace the role and responsibility of everyone involved with this game to promote meaningful, positive change in our communities.”
The theme of the campaign is to showcase athletes overcoming obstacles. Serena Williams features in another ad campaign, with the caption, “Girls from Compton don’t play tennis. They own it.”
