An NFL player who has participated in the national anthem protests said his father has lost work because of his actions.

Lions defensive linemen Akeem Spence tweeted Thursday that a contractor denied his father work on a house because of his protests.

There were eight Lions players who kneeled during the anthem on Sunday, and Spence was one of them. After the game, he explained his actions as every protester has when asked — that it is not about the flag or the anthem or disrespecting the military, but rather to raise awareness for racial inequality in America.

“No disrespect to the flag, no disrespect to any of the veterans or anything,” Spence told ESPN after the Lions’ 30-26 loss to the Falcons. “It was just right is right, wrong is wrong, and what the guy said about us as NFL players, I just feel like that’s something that’s us, as NFL players, we have to stand up for that’s not what we are. You know what I’m saying. We’re human beings. We give back to the community.

“We do great things, and our owners, you know what I’m saying, they do great things. So that’s something we don’t represent around the NFL. That’s something every team should have come out and showed this Sunday, that it’s not what that guy said about us.”

That guy he is referencing is President Donald Trump, who has targeted NFL players who protest during the anthem with a flurry of tweets and harsh words during press conferences. Trump said he’d like to see an owner “get that son of a bitch” off the field and fire anyone who protests during the anthem.

“It’s crazy and it’s wrong, you know. It shouldn’t be like that,” Spence said. “We’re hard-working people who give back to the community. Our owners are the same way, you know, and they have the utmost respect for us and we have the utmost respect for our country, our flag and everything like that. So for our head guy to say something like that about our owners and what they should do, that’s something that I can’t, man, right is right.

“I felt like he was wrong in that sense, and we just came out and acted unity, together and just tried to make a statement.”