Deadspin writer tries to whip up outrage mob against a child wearing face paint of NFL team and faces fierce backlash instead

A writer at the sports news website Deadspin faced backlash on social media over a dishonest attempt to sic an outrage mob on a child who was wearing face paint with the colors of an NFL team.

The article by Carron Phillips accused a very young fan of the Kansas City Chiefs of wearing "blackface" and showed a screenshot from social media where only one side of the boy's face could be seen.

"It takes a lot to disrespect two groups of people at once. But on Sunday afternoon in Las Vegas, a Kansas City Chiefs fan found a way to hate Black people and the Native Americans at the same time," he wrote.

He went on to place the blame on the boy's parents but also demanded that the league face accountability.

"While it isn’t the league’s responsibility to stop racism and hate from being taught in the home, they are a league that has relentlessly participated in prejudice. If the NFL had outlawed the chop at Chiefs games and been more aggressive in changing the team’s name, then we wouldn’t be here," Phillips said.

He also connected the incident to the efforts to stamp out critical race theory in public schools.

This is what happens when you ban books, stand against Critical Race Theory, and try to erase centuries of hate. You give future generations the ammunition they need to evolve and recreate racism better than before.

Nowhere in the article does it show the other side of the boy's face, which is painted red, so that the reader is led to believe the child is purposely wearing blackface in order to mock black people.

Some pointed this out on social media to Phillips:

Phillips decided to respond to his critics with a non sequitur, accusing all of them of hating Mexicans.

"For the idiots in my mentions who are treating this as some harmless act because the other side of his face was painted red, I could make the argument that it makes it even worse. Y’all are the ones who hate Mexicans but wear sombreros on Cinco," he tweeted.

Charles C.W. Cooke of National Review mocked Phillips' response with his own rephrasing.

“For those pointing out that my argument was stupid, rest assured that I am capable of making an even more stupid one if pushed," he replied.

Others ridiculed and berated Phillips.

"This man ruins the life of some poor kid for the crime of wearing face paint at a football game and he really thinks he’s the good guy," responded writer Libby Emmons.

"Our society is so soft and coddled that a 12 year old with face paint on is enough to bring 'men' like this to their knees. Pathetic," replied writer Savanah Hernandez.

"Yeah, just ruin this young fans life with your lying headline and misleading picture. This wasn’t black face, nor was it about race. It’s about support for the team," read another critical tweet.

The Chiefs banned headdresses in 2020 at their stadium over criticism from liberal groups. They said at the time that the "chop" motion fans make was also under review.

The Chiefs went on to defeat the Las Vegas Raiders by a score of 31 to 17.

Here's more about the banning of headdresses:

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