Oh Colin Kaepernick, look what you've done started.
The San Francisco 49ers quarterback decided to sit during the singing of the national anthem during the preseason because he wasn't going to "show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color."
And people have had a lot to say about it.
Although a multitude of celebrities and athletes have spoken their peace about the national anthem and what it means to them, Kate Upton's tweets particularly caught my eye.
In response to an article about members of the Miami Dolphins football team kneeling during this week's game, Upton tweeted "This is unacceptable. You should be proud to be an American. Especially on 9/11 when we should support each other."
And I'm gonna stop you right there, Ms. Upton.
First, standing up (or in this case, sitting down) for social injustice has absolutely nothing to do with the events that took place on September 11, 2001.
Second, for Kate Upton to equate kneeling or sitting during the national anthem with not being proud to be American is very...backwards. It's quite the opposite in fact.
Historically speaking, whenever Americans don't like the way things are going, they take action.
They've literally dumped pounds of tea into the ocean for crying out loud.
(America's also gone to war quite a bit, but that's neither here nor there.)
Now that we've cleared those things out the way, let's talk about Kaepernick's protest itself. By all accounts, Colin Kaepernick is simply opting not to stand during the national anthem before his game every week.
And boy, are people upset. And they shouldn't be.
Unfortunately, people are missing Kaepernick's point of his peaceful protest. It has nothing to do with those who have served in our armed forces. It has everything to do with the oppression of black people and other minority groups in America.
Let me repeat that: Kaepernick's protest has nothing to do with those who have served or currently serve in our armed forces, but everything to do with the oppression of black people and other minority groups in America.
It's not a hard concept to grasp. Yet, people are still upset.
And while I have a few theories as to why this is, (*cough* racism *cough* *cough* ignorance *cough*) I'll just save that for another article.
So, what have we learned today?
Colin Kaepernick is not bothering anyone by peacefully protesting social injustice against minorities in modern day America.
Yep, that sounds about right.
And one last thing Ms. Upton: you described the Dolphins players kneeling during the national anthem as "horrific," but I didn't see you describe the murders of Trayvon Martin, Philando Castile or Alton Brown the same way.
Oh, wait.
That's because you had nothing to say about them. But, you had everything to say about...a song?
Alright, Kate.
