TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – An official Twitter account of the Florida State University athletics department deleted a tweet Monday that showed civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. performing the 'tomahawk chop.'
The Tweet was posted from the Florida State Seminoles recruiting (@FSU_Recruiting) account just before 1 p.m. on MLK Day.
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In the post, an image of King is placed within the words "Do Something," a quote often used by Seminoles head football coach Willie Taggart. Underneath the image, the tweet uses the King quote, "If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way."
An arm with an FSU-gloved hand is photoshopped on King's body to make it appear as if he is performing the popular "tomahawk chop" made famous during Seminoles football games.
The tweet was removed from the account less than an hour after it was posted. School officials posted another tweet later in the day apologizing for the previous post.
"In a well-intentioned effort to recognize Martin Luther King, Jr. on this special day, a member of our recruiting staff created a graphic using one of Dr. King's quotes -- 'If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.' The quote resonated with our program's Do Something mantra," the tweet read. "However, in our attempt to more closely connect the message to FSU, we foolishly posted a graphic that was not in line with our intent. We are sorry for missing the mark in our attempt to celebrate Dr. King's legacy."