On the way home from a workout, former Red Bulls midfielder Derrick Etienne Jr. says he was pulled over and questioned twice by Columbus police Monday because “you look like you have warrants.”
Etienne, who is a member of the Columbus Crew SC, called for an end to “foolish and hateful stereotypes,” on Twitter.
“The first stop was because of an alleged illegal turn off the highway,” Etienne said, adding that the “second stop was a routine stop because of protesting in the city.
“I have absolutely no problem with officers doing their jobs and stopping me if I broke the law [which I did not] or if I was one of the inconsiderate people who are taking advantage of the protest of the much needed #blacklivesmatter movement by coming into a city that they don’t belong to to destroy and loot (which I am not).
“That I understand, which is why I complied and gave my ID. But for both officers to say, ‘You look like you have warrants’ is completely and unacceptable to me.”
Teammate Jordan Hamilton was with Etienne.
“I was in the passenger seat of Derrick’s for this same situation just 2 days ago,” he said on Twitter. “The sheer ignorance to the deeply rooted problem is shown by how poorly these situations are handled, and that is the most frightening thing. #BlackLivesMatter #IDontHaveWarrants
After he was loaned to FC Cincinnati last year, Etienne, a member of the Haitian national team, signed with Columbus in February.