Mississippi agency says it won’t buy from Nike over ads

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi’s public safety commissioner disclosed Saturday that state police will no longer buy Nike products, saying the athletic apparel maker is unpatriotic and fails to support those in uniform.

“As commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, I will not support vendors who do not support law enforcement and our military,” Commissioner Marshall Fisher said in a statement Saturday to The Associated Press.

It isn’t immediately clear how much gear the state police agency buys from Nike or if it purchases directly from the athletic apparel maker. Department spokesman Warren Strain said the department has bought shoes and shirts from the company, as well as tactical training uniforms.

But Mississippi’s Republican establishment is jumping to support the cause, with Gov. Phil Bryant lauding his appointee’s decision.

“I support the commissioner’s decision,” Bryant said in a statement. The governor said the commissioner has the right to choose vendors his department does business with “and it’s not going to be a company that pays an individual who has slandered our fine men and women in law enforcement.”

Nike didn’t immediately respond to a phone call and an email seeking comment Saturday. Online news organization Mississippi Today first reported the story Friday.

It’s the latest dustup following Oregon-based Nike’s decision to use former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in an ad campaign. Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016 to protest police brutality and social injustice.