Every Sunday, from September through January, approximately two thirds of Americans (including myself) will spend all day glued to their TV’s, rooting for their teams and booing others. We like to think of sports as purely entertainment, a way for us to distract ourselves from stresses in our lives and kick back with some hot wings and friendly competition. What we are learning now, though, is the capability of professional games to garner provocative conversation across our country about topics a little bit bigger than touchdowns.
Colin Kaepernick, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, opted to sit down during the national anthem at the team’s third preseason game. While his first few silent protests went fairly unnoticed in the beginning, Kaepernick grabbed America’s attention at the start of the season, garnering either heavy backlash or unyielding support from fans and non-sports watchers alike. Plenty of other well-known stars, like 49er’s safety Eric Reid and U.S. Women’s Soccer midfielder Megan Rapinoe, are defending Kaepernick’s decision and following his lead, while many others are declaring his action disrespectful and unpatriotic.
Kaepernick has since made it clear that he feels very strongly about his motive; that it is not just sitting down, but a form of peaceful protest against a racial prejudice our country is becoming vastly more aware of everyday. In defense of his actions, he states "I'm going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me, his is something that has to change. When there's significant change and I feel that flag represents what it's supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to, I'll stand."
Plenty of talk, both positive and negative, has been heard on the bases of racial profiling and stereotyping, with some still convinced that there is no injustice being done to those not light skinned. In Kaepernick’s scenario, the debate between standing up for injustice versus honoring one’s country is the core of his sitting down. Those opposing his stand for equality across races are only further oppressing by ignoring his perspective and experience.
Whether you agree or disagree with Kaepernick, he clearly succeeded in part, as his singular action created widespread conversation across the country. Kaepernick put the issue in everybody’s faces, without having to say a word. Sitting down and shutting up was enough of a stance to show that there are clear issues in our nation that need both validation and correction.
From a personal standpoint, I see no wrong in Kaepernick’s protest; in fact, I believe he was respectful in his protest, as he chose to simply back out of a ritual that he did not agree with. There was no violence, aggression, or bad-mouthing, nor did he make a scene. He simply sat down. He was not dishonoring those who love our country, those who risk their lives for our safety, or showing any signs of anti-nationalism.
He wants us to know that a country we are praising and hailing, is crushing and suppressing its own people.
He is fighting for those minorities who do not receive fair treatment; for those who feel the pressure of a system that is always against them; for those who feel their existence is lesser than others; for those who aren’t granted the privilege of agency, and whose voices are lost under those above with more power. He is fighting for our citizens and their right to be treated as such.
Kaepernick saw an opportunity in his fame to make a statement about a glitch in our nation. He has proved the domino effect that can push America in the right direction. If one person with a voice stands up for an issue (or sits down), it gives others the confidence to follow. Especially someone as well-known as a Super Bowl-winning quarterback. He has shown millions of Americans that prejudice is never gone, even when the first play begins.
"This stand wasn’t for me. This is because I’m seeing things happen to people that don’t have a voice, people that don’t have a platform to talk and have their voices heard, and effect change. So I’m in the position where I can do that and I’m going to do that for people that can’t."
The anthem is a tradition; it plays before every game, in any league. We hear the Pledge of Allegiance all through years of schooling to the point it is carved out, word by word, into our minds. Now we are faced with the question, How much of America are we drowning out?
This is not a condemnation of America, but a call for an introspective analysis of what we as Americans are perpetuating and who we are hurting. We have power structures so imbedded in our society that breaking them down will take more than just being aware of them. That is the first step, a giant leap Kaepernick has helped us take. The anthem is not the end-all-be-all of our country: it is the people, the citizens who live in society, who make America what it is.
We are facing a call to action that needs to be answered: listen to what others have to say; hear their experiences; justify their right to be angry; be supportive of your neighbors. Kaepernick and his followers want us to see that our system isn’t perfect, that our country as a whole is a system of hierarchy, in which minority races, classes, and sexualities are far from equal. Sitting down is not a dismissal of our troops or treason against the nation, but a rally to bring every person together equally.
There is nothing wrong with having pride in one’s country while also acknowledging its injustices. That is how we grow.
