The council overseeing New Jersey's $77 billion public worker pension fund will study its investments with Nike at the urging of a member representing police and firefighters who is unhappy with the company's new ad campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick.

Marty Barrett, a representative of retired police officers and firefighters, asked the council to consider divesting from its Nike holdings because of the ad.

Nike's use of the sports figure, whose protests of police brutality during the National Anthem drew controversy, has triggered boycotts of the brand.

Barrett said Thursday that Kaepernick's protest disrespects members of the military and first responders who were killed on 9/11.

Nike "made one of the worst business decisions of all time" in making Kaepernick the face of its ad campaign, Barrett said.

The State Investment Council voted unanimously to review its holdings, which a spokeswoman for the Treasury Department said include 311,500 equity shares valued at $26 million and 20 million principal valued at $18 million.

According to Bloomberg, four other public pension funds in Colorado, Wisconsin, Ohio and Oregon manage police pensions and own Nike stock.

Patrick Colligan, president of the New Jersey State Policemen's Benevolent Association, told NJ Advance Media Barrett was acting without his knowledge and that he is reticent to "involve politics in pension investments."

"I have been adamant, even when the governor chose to become more socially conscious with some of the investments, that I'm not sure we should be in the social justice business when we're investing in pensions, with the vast deficiencies and unfunded liabilities that we have in all the systems."

In recent months the state has dumped investments in a company manufacturing semi-automatic rifles and a private prison contractor that runs family detention centers amid increased scrutiny of the Trump administration's immigration policy.

Nike did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Samantha Marcus may be reached at smarcus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @samanthamarcus. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.