Colin Kaepernick

Colin Kaepernick – I Feel Strongly Both Ways

The View from the Middle

So, Colin Kaepernick decides to sit out the national anthem and you would think the Russians were sneaking nuclear missiles into Cuba again.  Let’s all hope he actually has a cause to highlight and wasn’t just pouting over his recent lackluster performance.  Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt and say he wanted to illuminate some injustice he felt strongly about.  So, how’s he doing?

Actually, not so good.  To start with, all of the publicity has been about him, and not the cause, whatever it is.  People have been arguing about whether he should even protest against the flag of the country that has given him so much and that also stands for the people who have fought and died for his freedom. 

Of course he has the right to refuse to stand for the national anthem.  That is just one of the great things about this country.  He has that right.  Try to do that in Russia or China or North Korea or name the South American country.  He would probably be shot or put in prison and for sure he would not be allowed to make millions of dollars playing a game like football.  But he does have that right here in the good old US of A.

And the NFL has the right to enforce the rules they have created, which Colin agreed to when he signed his multi-million dollar contract.  And people have the right to burn his jersey (as long as they don’t create a fire hazard, and I have seen some of that) or protest by not going to the games.  Freedom is not a one-way street.  In fact it is a multi-laned, multi-leveled freeway system that is available to everyone.  We’ll see how strongly Colin feels about his crusade if and when his income is threatened.

So, what are his causes anyway?  Do you even know?  He wants to shine a light on “the oppression of black people and people of color”.  Fair enough.  Our country is not perfect and we should be working on eliminating prejudice and evening the playing field of opportunity.  He also said, however, that “there are bodies in the streets and people are getting paid leave and getting away with murder”.  Paid leave?  Is this for police who are under investigation?  How many could there possibly be around the country?  A dozen?  Getting away with murder?  Again, WHAT?  Is this a comment on police shootings or drug related murders in Chicago? 

He also said that he could never vote for Donald Trump and that Hillary Clinton should be in jail.  I certainly can sympathize with his disappointment with both of our presidential candidates, but he needs to clarify his message.  If he is suggesting that Washington is inept, corrupt and bloated, then I am with him.  If he is implying that a bigger government is the answer to all of our problems, then I am disagree with him.

Here is my suggestion to Colin Kaepernick.  Stand for the next national anthem and say that now that you have the attention of the nation you want to use your position to make it better.  Recognize the good in this county.  We do have the freedom to make the very statement you made last week.  And we have made progress.  In 1865, the year the 13^th amendment passed, we had zero black congressmen or women.  One hundred years later, a year after the civil rights act passed, we had only six.  Today, just 50 years later, we have 48 black congress people and a black President.  Now that’s progress whether you want to admit it or not.  Embrace it.

Is America now perfect?  No, and I applaud Colin if he can expose some real problems and then, even better, suggest some solutions.  Is there prejudice in the US?  Unfortunately, the answer is yes, and we should denounce it wherever we find it, whether it is in a police department or a school or just on the street (BTW, prejudice swings both ways, so black activists who call for “killing white babies” should be universally condemned also). 

I would also suggest that Colin support some solutions and not just complain.  I have long supported strengthening black families, school choice and enterprise zones as real potential solutions to these problems.  People are tired of “bithching” and long for solutions.  Even if Colin’s solutions are different than mine, I beg him to focus on improving the situation and not just complaining.

I hope Colin stands proudly for the next and all future national anthems to lend his support to the country that has given him so much, and for those who have sacrificed to protect his liberties.  I also hope that he clarifies his position and focuses on improving this great country so that the country our children inherit will be even better than the one we live in today.