Those of you who have been reading my occasional Op-Eds for a few years on this and the previous site will remember that I have some “different†and often unpopular views. I rarely express them in public forums because some readers grow intolerant, but I feel free to do so here because we treat each other with respect. Consequently, I feel the need to comment on something that is “peppered†throughout this thread—athletes or other “entertainment†figures speaking out or acting out on issues that they feel strongly about.
Much of what I read and hear in other media centers around kneeling during the National Anthem, a peaceful protest started by Colin Kaepernick.
Colin Kaepernick has said many times that, as a political activist protesting police brutality and racial inequality in the United States, he can preach on street corners and write Op-Eds, but his greatest stage is the football field. He said he kneels as a way of "standing up for people who do not have a voice." He has continually said that his protests are not about disrespecting the military or the flag.
Having said that, now I'll tell you what I think–
Freedom of speech is protected by law but guided by emotion. The Supreme Court treats the taking a knee during the anthem as the same as speaking. Americans don't forfeit their First Amendment rights of free speech by joining a team. They have the legal right to speak their own opinions when they don't represent them as their employers' opinions.
So, the First Amendment gives Colin Kaepernick the right to say or act out things that some may disagree with. And those opposed have the equal right to make opposing statements. They don't have the right to publish their guesses at what he believes in.
I think that our Constitution was written by a small group of non-elected, landholding, slave owners who thought that their class was the only class that should be allowed to vote. They wrote that all men are created equal; their actions showed that they truly meant all men not all people, certainly not all women, Indians or slaves. Things that happen in the United States show me that much of this frame of mind still exists.
The reaction to actions or speech like this absolutely depends on the reactors' opinions on the subject, not necessarily on the vehicle (taking a knee during the anthem). I suspect that in the mid 1800s women who wanted to vote would have supported Susan B. Anthony's taking a knee. I suspect that many of you readers might have, too.
Such conflicts are rarely about the cause in question. They are about the participants and their culture, their ideologies and their faith. They are about sanction and censure, about whose dignity can withstand whose degradation.
We can all see that black lives in the United States are significantly different than white lives. Colin Kaepernick and supporting athletes want to use their stage to change that. They have the fire in their bellies. They’re attracting attention to the injustices they want to expose. They’re willing to make huge financial sacrifices to stand up for what they believe in. I admire them.
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Topic: State of Sports in US -- commentary which some may see as political (Read 2136 times)