Michael Irvin Compares Treatment From Marriott To Being Lynched

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During Super Bowl week, NFL analyst Michael Irvin was pulled off the air on both ESPN and NFL Network following allegations of misconduct.

The allegations stemmed from an alleged interaction that Irvin had with a female employee in the lobby of a Marriott hotel. In the days and weeks following the incident, however, the evidence seemed to point to Irvin being innocent, with witnesses since coming forward to defend him.

And now, as a result, he’s on the counter-offensive, as he’s filed a $100 million lawsuit against the hotel franchise. Speaking at a news conference in Dallas on Wednesday morning, Irvin compared Marriott’s treatment of him to that of a Black man being lynched:

“This sickens me because, in this great country, this takes me back to a time where [sic] a white woman would accuse a black man of something and they would take a bunch of guys that were above the law, throw a rope around his foot and drag him through the mud, and hang him by the tree,” Irvin said.

“Not a thought about what would happen, not an investigation. After repeated attempts, after people trying to go and say ‘Guys, here’s what really happened’ — here’s witnesses that will say this, here’s witnesses that’ll they that. [But] they’ll say we do not want to hear it.”

A Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver, Irvin spent his entire 11-year career with the Dallas Cowboys, winning three Super Bowls during his time with the team.

Nicknamed “The Playmaker, Irvin — who is considered to be one of the greatest wide receivers in the history of the National Football League — racked up 750 catches for 11,904 yards and 65 touchdowns.

Since retiring from the NFL, the 57-year-old Irvin starred in the Adam Sandler comedy The Longest Yard and has served as an NFL analyst for both ESPN and NFL Network.

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