All of a sudden, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security found itself in the spotlight. It began with them posting a series of messages on X using Philadelphia Eagles Hall of Famer Brian Dawkins. But the message it conveyed using Dawkins’ video is what led the league and the player to hold the DHS accountable. When both the NFL and Dawkins requested DHS remove the video, the department declined with a meme.

“no,” Seventh General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, James Percival, shared a Bugs Bunny meme with the message.

Things blew up with posts by DHS that appeared to come in response to Leading Report’s coverage of a “huge migrant caravan” headed for the US southern border.

“Our time has come,” the DHS posted alongside a 39-second video montage of Dawkins. The department followed up with another black-and-white photo of the safety, featuring the message, “The Border is Closed.”

But to Philadelphia Eagles fans and to the league at large, Dawkins is an icon who bears the nickname Weapon X. He played 13 seasons for the Eagles and gathered seven out of nine Pro Bowl honors in Philadelphia (the other two were in Denver). 

Dawkins’ résumé includes a spot on the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 2000s, five All-Pro selections, and a fan-voted place as the starting safety on the Eagles’ 75th Anniversary Team. Known as a self-proclaimed “free-lance safety,” he helped reshape the position, compiling 26 sacks and 37 forced fumbles. He also joined an exclusive group of five players with at least 30 career interceptions and 20 sacks.

So, the league took a stand to stop the matter from going too far and hence requested DHS to delete the video that features Dawkins. 

“BREAKING: The @NFL has asked Trump’s Homeland Security to remove this video that they posted of former @Eagles player @BrianDawkins’  pregame walkout and hard hits to promote ICE’s message about a purported migrant caravan,” reported writer and political commentator Ed Krassenstein on September 28. 

“The league has requested the DHS take down the video,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told The Los Angeles Times in an email.

Dawkins also spoke out, claiming that he did not give consent to DHS to use his video in a government social media post.

“Hello, blessed people,” he said in the video message posted on September 28. “All right, let’s be clear. I didn’t give permission for my name, image, and likeness to be used by anybody. All right? By anybody. Take a deep breath. Y’all be blessed. All right? Y’all be blessed.”

“I have very respectfully not given permission,” the caption of the video message read. 

Meanwhile, this is not the first time that players’ video has been used for political content. The White House drew from NFL and NCAA football highlights for a March video that also featured footage of airstrikes on Iranian targets.

That video also remains on the social media site. Time to see whether Dawkins’ video will undergo the same fate or not.