The NAACP is defending the man who got ejected from an NFL game Sunday for flying an Israeli flag from his luxury suite.
George Norcross III, a New Jersey Democratic political powerbroker, got ejected from Lincoln Financial Field after a confrontation with security Sunday night during the Philadelphia Eagles game against the Dallas Cowboys.
Norcross had a banner combining the U.S. and Israeli flags hanging from his luxury suite. A video that went viral shows him engaging a stadium worker in a heated conversation. The worker then removes the banner as another worker escorts Norcross out of the stadium.
Security removed George Norcross from the Eagles game today because he hung an American and Israeli flag outside his box. Then they tore down the flag. pic.twitter.com/3agNgr3X0E
— Julie Roginsky (@julieroginsky) November 6, 2023
The NAACP has Norcross’ back. Richard Smith, President of the NAACP New Jersey State Conference and national NAACP board member, said in a statement Wednesday that the incident sets a troubling precedent.
“What does it say to the world when displaying our flag and that of an ally lead to ejection of a patron from a sporting event?” Smith wrote.
“What’s the new standard in the NFL? Is it all flags that are banned at Eagles games? Is it only the Israeli flag? Will LBGTQ fans be permitted to display a rainbow flag at a game?”
The New Jersey chapter of the NAACP called out the Philadelphia Eagles for tearing down a flag symbolizing support for Israel during last Sunday’s home game – and for kicking the flag’s owner, George Norcross, out of the stadium.https://t.co/2mkkAGijQJ
— ROI-NJ (@ROINJNews) November 9, 2023
Such displays of support for both sides in the Israel-Hamas conflict have become more common in the U.S. in recent weeks.
Norcross said in a statement Monday that security “forcibly removed and assaulted him” for “refusing to remove” the banner. He threatened to sue the Eagles, the NFL, and a security company. He later told NJ Advance Media that he found the incident “astonishing,” and alleging they “sent a bunch of thugs in to remove an Israeli-American flag.”
The Eagles issued a statement Monday saying the incident had “nothing to do with the content“ of the banner, but that it violated stadium rules. According to the team Norcross got ejected after refusing to remove the banner, then allegedly physically and verbally abusing stadium workers.
[ROI-NJ] Photo Credit: Julie Roginsky, X/Twitter]