Brandon Orlando Tatum (born April 22, 1987), also known as The Officer Tatum, is an American conservative political commentator, author, radio personality, former police officer, and former college football player.
Brandon Tatum | |
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![]() Tatum in 2023 | |
Born | Brandon Orlando Tatum April 22, 1987 Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. |
Other names | The Officer Tatum |
Education | University of Arizona (BA) |
Occupations |
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Political party | Republican |
Movement | Black conservative movement |
Spouse | Corinne Tatum |
Children | 2 |
Website | theofficertatum |
Early life and education
editBorn in Fort Worth, Texas, Tatum was an All-American football player in high school.[1] His father, Bobby Tatum, was a captain in the Fort Worth Fire Department.[1] His great uncle, Jack Tatum, was an Ohio State All-American, NFL All-Pro, and a Super Bowl champion with the Oakland Raiders [1] Tatum was featured in the US-Army All-American Game, which showcases the top 78 high school football players in the nation.[1] Tatum committed to playing on a full athletic scholarship from the University of Arizona in 2004. Tatum played at Arizona for five years and entered the NFL Draft in 2010.[2]
Height | Weight | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 1+3⁄8 in (1.86 m) |
204 lb (93 kg) |
4.59 s | 1.59 s | 2.66 s | 4.31 s | 7.08 s | 38.5 in (0.98 m) |
11 ft 2 in (3.40 m) |
21 reps | |||
All values from Pro Day[2] |
Career
editPolice officer
editAfter going undrafted in the NFL Draft, Tatum became a police officer in Tucson, Arizona. He rose to prominence in early 2016 for a viral video which featured him at a campaign rally for presidential candidate Donald Trump. Following the rally, he said in the video that he felt unsafe because of those who protested against the event.[3] He went viral a second time in September 2017 for a video in which he expressed his opposition to players "taking the knee" during the national anthem at NFL football games.[4]
Political commentary
editTatum resigned from the Tucson Police Department in October 2017 to join Liftable Media — a conservative content producer that owns and operates The Western Journal and The Conservative Tribune. He then served as director of urban engagement for the conservative action group Turning Point USA, before founding his own media company in late 2019.[5]
In November 2021, Bombardier Books published Tatum’s book, Beaten Black and Blue: Being a Black Cop in an America Under Siege, distributed by Simon & Schuster.[6]
In May 2022, Tatum began hosting a national talk radio program, The Officer Tatum Show, distributed by Salem Radio Network.[7]
Tatum runs a YouTube channel called "The Officer Tatum"[8] with over 2.31 million subscribers. As of May 2023, he has accumulated over 571 million total views.
Tatum has also appeared as a guest on Candace Owens's PragerU show The Candace Owens Show as well as her The Daily Wire political podcast Candace as a panelist.
Blexit
editAlong with Owens,[9] Tatum founded Blexit,[10][11] an organization meant to persuade the black American population to leave the Democratic Party and re-register as Republicans. The name Blexit is a portmanteau, a combination of the words "black" and "exit".
Bibliography
edit- Beaten Black and Blue, published November 30, 2021 (ISBN 1642938513)
References
edit- ^ a b c d "2008 Football Roster". ArizonaWildcats. 2008.
- ^ a b "Brandon Tatum, Arizona, FS, 2010 NFL Draft Scout, NCAA College Football". draftscout.com. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
- ^ Rikki, Mitchell (March 22, 2016). "Police officer's Donald Trump video goes viral". KGUN9.
- ^ "Tucson Police Officer's #Takeaknee Video Goes Viral". Arizona Independent News Network. September 27, 2017.
- ^ Kasparak, Alex (June 17, 2020). "Ex-Cop Brandon Tatum's Success Doesn't Disprove White Privilege". Snopes.
- ^ Tatum, Brandon (November 30, 2021). Beaten Black and Blue: Being a Black Cop in an America Under Siege. Bombardier Books. ISBN 978-1-64293-852-4. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
- ^ "Brandon Tatum to succeed Larry Elder in Salem's night slot". Inside Radio. May 10, 2022.
- ^ Tatum, Brandon. "The Officer Tatum". YouTube. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
- ^ DeCiccio, Emily; Howard, Christopher (October 29, 2018). "What is Blexit? Candace Owens explains plan to lead 'black exit' from Democratic Party, impact 2020". Fox News.
- ^ "Blexit Foundation Website".
- ^ "Founders - blexit.com".
External links
edit- Official website – The Officer Tatum
- Official website – Tatum Report
- Brandon Tatum at IMDb