Over the past week there's been a lot of controversy surrounding San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick's decision to not stand during the national anthem (twice - once sitting down, the other kneeling instead). In addition, Kaepernick was also seen wearing socks that depicted police officers as pigs during practice in the days following the original incident. The quarterback has since received a barrage of backlash from social media with many calling his actions "anti-american" and disrespectful to members of the armed forces. On the contrary though, some veterans are applauding his efforts, even starting a hashtag #VeteransForKaepernick. As a cadet at the United States Air Force Academy, I was initially infuriated at Kaepernick's actions, but have slowly come to understand why what he did is a good thing.
1. He perfectly modeled athletic efficiency
Every athlete knows that efficiency is key to good performance. Take swimming for example. A swimmer could stroke as fast as he/she wanted to, but if there's no efficiency, they won't move through the pool very well. In order to maximize energy, speed, and power, athletes must pay attention to the little things such as arm swing and footwork in order to be efficient. Colin Kaepernick exemplified this aspect of sports in the best way possible by sitting down during the national anthem. As the recently demoted backup to starter Blaine Gabbert, Kaepernick saved energy by staying seated, knowing he'd be back on the bench in less than two minutes. Why stand up just to sit back down again?
2. He took the heat off Ryan Lochte (and Tom Brady)
During the 2016 Rio Olympics, American swimmer Ryan Lochte came under fire for claiming to be robbed and held at gun point one night after a party. Evidence later showed that Lochte lied about the event and that although he was held at gun point, it was because he and several other swimmers had vandalized a gas station. While all the talk as of late had been about Lochte, Kaepernick's actions have pushed Lochte's embarrassment out of the spotlight and put Kaepernick front and center. Not only that, but ESPN and company have seemed to have forgotten Tom Brady's #deflategate incident and subsequent four-game suspension, taking the pressure off of the QB who is now forced to live the awful life of getting paid to sit at home and not work for four weeks. Thanks to Kaepernick though, the press is no longer scorning Brady and he can count his money and four Superbowl rings in peace.
3. Kaepernick gave SportsCenter something to talk about
After the conclusion of the 2016 Olympics, there was a bit of lull in sports coverage from ESPN's flagship program SportsCenter. While there is only so much you can talk about on a show that runs consecutively 24/7, viewers do actually get bored of hearing about Fantasy Football and how great College Game Day will be this year. When the sports world needed him most though, Kaepernick delivered, and ESPN was able to finally disrupt their usual schedule to talk about the national anthem controversy.
4. He brought attention to the lack of diversity in socks
Although it wasn't even Wacky-Sock Wednesday, Kaepernick brought attention to America's complete lack of diversity in socks. Dominated by the black and white Nike swoosh, the feet of America do not accurately represent the shmorgishborg of backgrounds that make up our nation. Although very offensive, Kaepernick's wardrobe showed us that we need to branch out from the usual black and white sock and wear socks that are unique and different, just like every person in America. Hopefully the end result of this incident will be a reform in the sock industry.
5. He brought our attention back to how great America is
Through this controversy, Kaepernick has reminded us that we live in a country that gives us the freedom and liberty to express our personal views in whatever way possible. Although I disagree with those views, I respect his right to not stand for flag that thousands have died for. Because that's what America is: the land of the free, because of the brave.
