Last week, Colin Kaepernick sparked massive public outrage with his decision not to stand for the national anthem. He stated, "I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color." He said he was tired of countless Americans being killed in the streets and nothing being done about it.
This deliberate act of protest is not the first of its kind, we've seen similar actions from numerous athletes. We saw it from former Denver Nuggets guard Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf when he refused to stand during the national anthem because he believed the flag was "a symbol of oppression, of tyranny." We saw protest when Tommie Smith and John Carlos held the Black Power salute at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico, and more recently, there was Gabby Douglas who did not put her hand over her heart during the medal ceremony for gymnastics at this year's Olympics.
Colin Kaepernick's decision was not made because he hates the United States or hates white people; he did this because he recognizes that people of color, especially black people, face racism, bigotry, targeted violence and many other forms of injustice on a daily basis (whether people choose to deny and ignore it or not). Black Americans are more likely to be arrested, incarcerated and killed by cops than any other population in the country.
In 2015, over 1000 unarmed people were killed by police officers. Over 300 of these people were black, and over 500 of these people were white. Now while the number of white people killed is higher than the number of black people, this does not mean white people are more likely to be killed by cops. In the U.S., there are about 160 million more white people than black people. White people make up about 62 percent of the population but only about 49 percent of those are killed by police. African Americans account for 24 percent of those killed by police, but are only 13 percent of the population. That means black Americans are 2.5 times more likely to be shot and killed by police officers than white Americans.
Kaepernick's protest is not for recognition and publicity. It's a call for action. He is aware of his privilege as a wealthy celebrity athlete. He didn't do this for himself. He did this for all the people being mistreated in America. He did this for Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, Keith Childress, Tiara Thomas, India Kager, Kris Jackson, Eric Garner, Alton Sterling, Philando Castile, Freddie Gray, Natasha McKenna, Walter Scott, Tony Robinson, Mike Brown and countless other innocent people. He did this for the grieving families of the victims and for those living in fear of their lives being stolen everyday.
Sitting behind a computer screen and calling Kaepernick derogatory names is not going to show our vets how much we appreciate their service. If America is so outraged at how disrespectful Kaepernick's decision is to the country and those who serve it, then why is little being done to make sure our vets are being treated with the highest of standards and offered the best support services?
White Europeans stole this country that we are so proud of from thousands of millions of Native Americans and Mexicans. We raped, tortured, beat, burned and slaughtered them. Our "Founding Fathers" kidnapped African people and sold them like cattle. They stole their freedom, human rights and homeland. We wiped out the original and true Americans and built this nation on the backs of innocent people of color. We stand on their blood soaked land and claim it to be our own. Our flag is sewn together by the skin of these people and dyed in their blood, yet we are still not equal to each other.
This isn't about sitting down during America's love song. This is about standing up to injustice and trying to get white people to listen and look around at all the monstrosities happening right in front of them. This is about freedom of speech. If you're more upset about the fact that Kaepernick sat down during our nation's anthem than you are about all the injustice happening in this country, you are part of the problem. If we don't stop to listen and take a look at our actions as white people, nothing is going to change. Innocent people are going to keep dying at the hands of those who are supposed to protect them. We need to unite as American people and recognize the strength of our actions and the mistakes of our past. We need to change the way we do things and treat people so that we can all be happy and proud to be Americans.
