https://socialistaction.org/2016/09/06/bravo-49er-colin-kaepernick/
Bravo 49er Colin Kaepernick!
/ 16 hours ago
sept-2016-kaepernick-fans
By JEFF MACKLER
San Francisco 49er superstar quarterback Colin Kaepernick roiled the
racist establishment when he “took a knee” rather than stand and salute
the American flag during the playing of the National Anthem on Aug. 26
before the 49ers final pre-season game against the San Diego Chargers.
This was the fourth time, but the first in uniform during this year’s
pre-season games, that Kaepernick, who led the 49ers to the Super Bowl
in the 2012 season and to the N.F.C. championship game in 2013, refused
to stand.
Kaepernick, who is biracial, said during a post-game media conference,
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that
oppresses Black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than
football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There
are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away
with murder.”
After recovering from several injuries and three surgeries since 2014,
Kaepernick will likely be the 49ers’ back-up quarterback as the 2016
season begins.
Kaepernick has been pilloried by racist bigots across the country but
has also received wide support among 49er fans and social justice
activists. He was joined in his refusal to stand by 49er teammate Eric
Reid. The following week, Seattle Seahawk cornerback Jeremy Lane,
similarly refused to stand during the National Anthem in order to “stand
beside” Kaepernick.
Megan Rapinoe, one of America’s most prominent female soccer players,
also knelt during a National Women’s Soccer League match a few days
later stating that she was “disgusted by how Kaepernick has been
treated” and would continue to kneel throughout the season.”
In an article entitled, “Insulting Colin Kaepernick says more about our
patriotism than his,” the National Basketball Association’s all-time
leading scorer, Kareem Abdul Jabbar aptly noted: “What should horrify
Americans is not Kaepernick’s choice to remain seated during the
National Anthem, but that nearly 50 years after Ali was banned from
boxing for his stance and Tommie Smith and John Carlos’s raised fists
caused public ostracization and numerous death threats, we still need to
call attention to the same racial inequities. Failure to fix this
problem is what’s really un-American here.”
Jeff Mackler is Socialist Action’s candidate for U.S. president in 2016.
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September 6, 2016 in Black Liberation, San Francisco Bay Area, Vote
Socialist Action. Tags: Kaepernick
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