It’s been a while since my last post but I had to make time for this.
Firstly, let me say I didn’t
grow up watching sports so although I respect the talent out there and
discipline involved in developing athletic talent I don’t think ANYONE should
be worshiped as a hero just because they can put a unique spin on a ball, jump
farther or run faster. What makes a hero are the things you do for OTHERS as a
person. It’s HOW you use your talents for those that need help. Many are comparing
Colin Kaepernick to Muhammad Ali because Ali WAS a hero. He not only stood his
ground for his beliefs AND SUFFERED FOR IT but most of how he conducted his life was
in support of African Americans, a group he believed needed his support.
So what about this dude
Colin Kaepernick? I’m not going to say he’s risen to level of hero… yet but I
do have respect for what he’s trying to accomplish as he has sparked yet
another debate/conversation on race in this country without the pain of another police shooting and city in flames. However I think I may be
in the minority that has a problem with reactions on both sides of the debate.
If you’ve read any of my past blogs you know I enjoy being the town contrarian.
So here it is-
So here it is-
My only problem with his protest
against the flag/anthem is it’s a forfeiture of our ownership. By saying I’m
not proud of this country or the symbols of this country you’re removing
yourself and us from the equation and setting up a them versus us scenario like black
people were kidnapped from the shores of Africa and brought to the Great United
States of America. No… that didn’t happen, black people we kidnapped and
brought to the shores of a growing wilderness… a wilderness that WE CONTRIBUTED
and continue to contribute building into what is THE GREAT UNITED STATES.
We own that flag and that
anthem as much as the “confederate flag wearing redneck” living in the sticks
or the Park Ave republican. We all have an investment IN this country as
AMERICANS and just because a few fellow ignorant citizens may believe otherwise
doesn’t mean we should act like mistreated guests when we are in fact owners.
Think about this, every
group of people that immigrated here, brought their culture, language and
traditions that they were allowed to practice without major persecution except
Africans. Slaves were captured from different regions with different languages
and customs, brought to America and separated from family, tribes, villages in
a strange brutal new land where they HAD to develop their own NEW culture. They
weren’t formally taught English but adapted. Through a combination of some
salvaged African traditions, blended with new ones born out of the need to
survive the world was introduced to the first African Americans that truly did
not exist anywhere else before on this planet.
America IS the birthplace of
African Americans.
Out of the pain of survival,
negro spirituals evolved into the Blues, Jazz and Rock and Roll which is
UNIQUELY American. Even the history of Hip Hop has its roots in the slave
traditions of this country. Check this clip out.
I haven’t read a recent
American History schoolbook but African American contributions to the wealth
and greatness of the US is beyond the scant mentions of us as slaves and
inventors of peanut butter. So Although I agree with Kaepernick’s protest I
disagree with disrespecting a symbol we ALL helped to make great just because
the power structure doesn’t recognize us as equal stakeholders.
Now my problem with people’s
reactions to his protest is rooted in the drone-like nationalistic hypocrisy I
see and have seen before. Somehow practicing the very rights we are endowed
with as Americans make us un-American? What? How does that make sense? It
reminds me of the final speech in the movie “The American President” where
Michael Douglas playing the POTUS says, “America is Advanced Citizenship” Check
the clip out.
As citizens we can’t just
have a blind reaction to fellow citizen’s protest without the facts. That’s
what I mean by drone-like. “You offended the flag you must be unpatriotic.”
That’s ignorant. People are posting videos of themselves burning his jersey
like he killed someone. And the reaction seems to all have a similar theme, the
fact that he’s somehow ungrateful.
People act like he should just be happy, silent and entertain the masses
like he’s paid to do. Which was my MAJOR problem with Michael Jordan but that’s
whole other blog. The problem with this simplistic thinking is, his salary
isn’t a handout. Management isn’t paying him because they feel guilty about
slavery or because they want to do something nice for him. They’re paying him
because they believe he represents an economic advantage to them and in
business that’s called an investment. This is business and you better believe
the economic advantage they believe he’s worth, is more than he’s being paid
otherwise they wouldn’t pay it.
I can only surmise that the fans that have a
problem with him and are wishing he blows out his ACL, believe the problem with
citizen fatalities at the hands of the police departments across this country is
a criminal matter and not a civil or social matter. Too often I hear the words
“but he/she was breaking the law” or resisting like that warrants death in this
country. Eric Garner was selling untaxed cigarettes. Not crack or heroin. In
the NYC penal code that’s a misdemeanor or in Garner’s case possibly a Class E felony based on how many times he
was busted for the same offense prior but neither “non-violent quality of life” infraction rises
the level of capital punishment.
I’m not going to list all
the innocent citizens or non-violent “criminals” that have been killed by law
enforcement and resulted in zero repercussions for the loss of life but I am
going to say Colin Kaepernick’s stance is based on an unequal application of
the law on a select group of its citizenry and I wish people would stop
distorting his message into something anti-military or unpatriotic.
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