Lucy North/PA
Despite rallying against Nike and their latest England kit, Laurence Fox dipped his toes into the waters of hypocrisy over the weekend – after he attended a protest event wearing a pair of trainers created by the iconic brand.
Fox was part of 100 or so demonstrators at a gathering organised by Turning Point UK. The protest, which claimed to be in the interests of protecting British culture, praised the likes of Lee Anderson and Suella Braverman for their immigration rhetoric.
There were minor altercations with police, but the event was largely peaceful – thanks in part to its small size. Nike’s decision to add different colours to the St. George Flag on England’s new football shirt was among the grievances raised.
Although this design has been ‘playfully’ edited on previous kits, it’s only now that people have decided to take offence. The row has seen both Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer condemn the product – adding more fuel to the culture war discourse.
It has provided an opportunity too good for Laurence Fox to turn down. He told Nike to ‘keep their hands off the flag’, and continued to criticise the brand. However, the political activist was wearing some rather ironic footwear…
After trending on Twitter yesterday, Fox was forced to address the faux-pas. He argued that the shoes were 15 years old, and therefore, it was perfectly fine to keep wearing them. Incredible logic, really.
“I just turned on the internet to see I was trending for wearing a pair of 15-year-old Nike high tops. Unfortunately, I bought all of these before Nike started using sexual deviance to sell their products – so I’m going to hang onto them.” | Laurence Fox
