UFC's Jorge Masvidal Calls Colin Kaepernick A ‘Coward’ For Once Wearing Fidel Castro Shirt
Cuban-American UFC star Jorge Masvidal spoke out on the “SOS Cuba” protests taking place on the island against the government and has some issues with former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
“My father escaped Cuba when he was 14 years old,” Masvidal said in a video posted to his social media. “And I’ve only heard the horror stories since I could process thoughts of how shitty this communist regime, killing machine is. So I just want to shed some light on Cuba — big SOS signal for them.”
“This oppression has been going on for 61 years. This is not just because of the pandemic, or it’s not just because they ran out of medicine — they’ve been out of medicine and they've been out of resources and food because of the corrupt government and the extreme corruption over there where only a few at the top eat and everyone has to suffer," he said. "Those days have to end."
Masvidal went on to share an Instagram post to his story of Kaepernick wearing a Fidel Castro shirt from 2016 and said that “cowards like this fool” who should be "sent to live in Cuba" to see how he likes living under oppression.
Kaepernick received criticism when he wore the Castro shirt that also featured Malcolm X before the 49ers played the Dolphins back in 2016 — the year Castro died.
The then-San Francisco 49ers quarterback defended his decision by saying he agreed with Castro’s investment in education but didn’t support Castro’s oppressive tactics, per multiple reports.
“I agree with the investment in education," he said. "I also agree with the investment in free universal health care as well as the involvement in helping end apartheid in South Africa. ...I would hope that everybody agrees those things are good things. And trying to push the false narrative that I was a supporter of the oppressive things that he did is just not true.”
“One thing that Fidel Castro did do is they have the highest literacy rate because they invest more in their education system than they do in their prison system,” Kaepernick said, per SI.com. “Which we do not do here, even though we’re fully capable of doing that.”