x
Breaking News
More () »

Kenner mayor tight-lipped after rescinding Nike ban

"The voters gave him a chance, and this is what he showed them."

KENNER - Following four days of protest and outrage, Kenner Mayor Ben Zahn spoke publicly about the policy ban for the first time, saying he's reversing his controversial playground booster club's ban on using Nike products.

"It's time for us to put this aside and move forward from this as one city," Mayor Ben Zahn said.

Zahn's original memo on the ban was sent out shortly after Nike's new ad campaign with former NFL player Colin Kaepernick. For the past two years, Kaepernick has been in the spotlight for kneeling during the National Anthem. What was meant to be a peaceful protest of police brutality against African Americans, sparked heated debates about patriotism, racism and freedom of speech.

"I looked at what I saw happening on a National level, with Nike as a whole. And I stayed to my values on that," Mayor Zahn said.

Eyewitness News asked the Mayor what his message would be for his Black and Brown constituents.

"This was not meant to do anything like that. This was meant, what I just said, to protect our patriot values. Our fire, our police. And also our taxpayers," Mayor Zahn said.

To clarify we asked him again, but he declined to comment.

"Him rescinding the memo was protocol. Something he needed to do. It was not how he felt," Kenner resident Jill Johnson said.

Johnson, a former Booster Club mom, says Zahn's message was hollow. She's calling for Zahn's resignation.

"The voters gave him a chance, and this is what he showed them," Johnson said.

"You have to be active. You have to be engaged. You have to vote," R.C. Blakes Jr. said.

R.C. Blakes Jr. is a Co-Pastor at New Home Family Worship Center. He says the mayor's move was politically smart, but socially unjust.

"I don't know the Mayor, so I won't attack his character. But I will say this..throughout our history, things have been done covertly and things have been done through the system--that we will never know happened. This just happens to be the occasion where this systematic behavior and this covert operation has been made public, and so now you find a political official, standing by himself," Blakes Jr. said.

Caresse Jackman can be reached at cjackman@wwltv.com.

Before You Leave, Check This Out