Former NFL Player on Anthem Protests: It's 'My Duty' to 'Stand Against Racism'

A regional donut chain caused controversy when they posted billboards calling attention to NFL players who kneel for the national anthem, Fox 43 reported.

Maple Donuts, based in York, Pa., published advertisements along the US Route 30 corridor that read "Maple Donuts takes a stand not a knee."

Maple Donuts billboard: ‘Takes a Stand and Not a Knee’ sparks online debate https://t.co/uuGWwXybHN pic.twitter.com/MR6302OwTu — WPMT FOX43 (@fox43) October 22, 2017

While a number of people in the moderately conservative rural region appreciated the message, not all were pleased.

"I wish the owner of Maple Donuts wouldn't use race as a wedge issue," one critic wrote on social media, the network reported.

But, a manager for one of Maple Donuts' locations said the message is meant to be "100 percent patriotic."

Jim Nelson said that Maple Donuts president Charlie Burnside's "personality is coming out in those billboards."

The ads are not the first time the chain took a stand on a public issue, as the company's location near Lisburn, Pa. posted a pro-Trump banner prior to the election, according to the Harrisburg Patriot-News.

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