San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, left, greets Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers at the end of an NFL preseason football game Friday, Aug. 26, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif. Green Bay won 21-10. (AP Photo/Tony Avelar)Embracing freedom in all its forms and functions isn’t always easy, is it?
Especially when San Francisco 49ers multimillionaire quarterback Colin Kaepernick decides to exercise his freedom to sit down during our national anthem as a personal protest to the perceived mistreatment of many African-Americans in this country.
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick told NFL Media after his momentary sit-in prior to Friday’s preseason loss to Green Bay. “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.”
That many of his NFL brothers come from families with ties to our nation’s armed forces, whose members put their lives on the line each and every day to protect those freedoms – as do our law enforcement officers, firefighters and first responders on the home front – has understandably created an immediate outrage.
Former teammate and current Minnesota Vikings offensive lineman Alex Boone told USA Today: “You see all these pictures of these veterans that have no legs, and they’re standing up in a wheelchair. I had a brother that served, and he lost friends. I know how much it means to him. It’s shameful.”
With the first Sunday of this NFL regular season falling on the 15th anniversary of 9-11, this seems certain to remain an emotional, volatile topic.
Yet whether you love Kaepernick’s words, loathe them or fall somewhat uncomfortably in between, it would be foolish to view him as sitting alone in his anger and frustration.
We may well have twice elected an African-American president in Barack Obama, and his predecessor in the Oval Office, George W. Bush, had two African-Americans (Colin Powell and Condolleeza Rice) serve as secretary of state, but whether it be Baltimore, Milwaukee, Baton Rouge, La., or Ferguson, Mo., we have not seen race stir such division and distrust in this country since the 1960s.
And while it would be difficult to seriously elevate Kaepernick’s gesture to that of U.S. sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos standing on the medal platform at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City with their heads bowed and one arm raised, a black glove on the raised hands as a black power protest, it is undeniably significant. Especially if it encourages others to follow him.
For instance, seconds after New York Giants offensive lineman Justin Pugh – who is white, whose brother serves in the military – tweeted Saturday “I will be STANDING during the National Anthem tonight. Thank you to ALL (Gender, Race, Religion) that put your lives on the line for that flag,” the following tweet appeared from an apparent veteran: “You don’t have to stand. We fought so you’d have the right to do what you want.”
That’s the other side of freedom, the less popular side, but certainly one of equal, if not greater importance.
This country has never demanded blind allegiance. It’s what makes us the envy of the entire world. Beyond that, as has been stated before in this space, there is no way white Americans can truly appreciate or understand what it’s like to be black. We don’t hear car doors lock whenever we approach. We didn’t attend a run-down, inner-city school where getting out alive is seen as important as getting a diploma, however poorly that diploma is viewed by most four-year colleges against one from the suburbs. We don’t worry that every passing car may harbor someone ready to shoot us. We don’t wonder if we didn’t get the job because of our skin color, nor do we fear being targeted by police for that same reason.
And because of that, to argue against Kaepernick’s stance on general principle is completely wrong.
But something else could also be wrong, however unfathomable it seems at this moment. We used to have prayer in schools. You can argue over the rightness of that given this nation’s belief in separation of church and state. But we are also a nation that continues to print “in God we trust” on our currency as our political leaders almost uniformly end every message and address with “God bless America.”
Yet despite recent surveys showing more than 60 percent of the public wanting prayer to return to our public schools, it’s been removed by a vocal minority who believe prayer threatens their rights.
So what if this happened: What if more and more Americans started to believe that being forced to listen to the national anthem violated their freedoms? What if that minority grew from what would probably be less than 2 percent today to 10 or 15 percent, maybe more? Would our courts rule the national anthem unconstitutional on the basis that it violates the rights of people who no longer believe it represents them?
Kaepernick, an African-American who was raised by white parents, deserves much grudging respect for his unpopular stance. Especially since he seems to understand what it could cost him when he says: “I am not looking for approval. I have to stand up for people that are oppressed. If they take football away, my endorsements from me, I know that I stood up for what is right.”
Actually, he stood up for his version of what is right, which is fine.
But as we move forward, are we not also right to worry if the Politically Correct Police have become far more interested and dedicated to defending that which offends the minority of us rather than that which offends the majority of us?
Just a thought.
Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.