The originals own words:
"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 in an exclusive interview after the game. "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."
So I guess not showing pride and disrespect are not necessarily the same thing
Correct. You "show pride" because you
feel it, not because some klown orders you to in some orchestrated robotic charade.
And you left out a lot of Kaepernick's remarks. Like
this part:
>> I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country. I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. Thatās not happening. People are dying in vain because this country isnāt holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody. Thatās something thatās not happening. Iāve seen videos, Iāve seen circumstances where men and women that have been in the military have come back and been treated unjustly by the country they have fought for, and have been murdered by the country they fought for, on our land. Thatās not right. <<
And
this, from over a year ago:
>> āThe media painted this as Iām anti-American, anti-men-and-women of the military and thatās not the case at all,āā Kaepernick said after playing the first half of the 49ersā 31-21 victory over the Chargers. āI realize that men and women of the military go out and sacrifice their lives and put themselves in harmās way for my freedom of speech and my freedoms in this country and my freedom to take a seat or take a knee so I have the utmost respect for them.
āI think what I did was taken out of context and spun a different way.āā <<
As I said, you made the accusation, so that gives you the burden of proof And you can't do it.
Then there's this spot-on analysis:
>> A related criticism of Kaepernick is that an NFL stadium is no place for political protest. The whole āstick to sportsā mantra is such a funny, hypocritical concept, particularly when it comes to the NFL, a body that aims to project an apolitical image, and certainly discourages individuality in its players.
Hereās the problem. Like it or not, the NFL is a hub of political discourse. As its footprint has exponentially grown, the league has been forced to take societal stances on DV and LGBT rights, and been thrust into hot-button legal issues like labor rights, antitrust, and player safety. But
nowhere has that political messaging become more prevalent than inside that stadium during its omnipresent embracing of the military.
On Sundays, a large American flag stretches the length of the field, oftentimes held by military members. Enlisted members hold emotional, public reunions with loved ones. There are enlisting events, a Salute to Service week, live cutaways to military members during Thanksgiving ās highly viewed lineups, national announcers thanking the troops, and players adorning ribbons. Heck, the Washington Redskins even started incorporating āGod Bless Americaā into its Americana package last season.
No amount of military appreciation has seemingly been too much, and we recently learned why: the Defense Department paid over $700,000 to the league between 2012-15 to be its propaganda machine. In the process, the national anthem at NFL games has become synonymous with paying respect to the military.
Secret payment aside, there is, of course, nothing inherently wrong with honoring the military at a sporting event. No group deserves it more. But
that does not mean those who are honored have ownership over patriotism and our anthem.
The very reason the criticism that Kaepernick ādisrespected the troopsā is unfair is because his critics are
projecting what the national anthem means to them.
There is no objective meaning of the anthem, and Kaepernick is perfectly legitimate in protesting what it means
to him. << --
Sports Illustrated
So you can project your own fantasies onto other people all you like, but that's all you're doing.
And what about that Pentagon fake-patriotism pimp money? Is that not "disrespectful"?
You won't touch that willya.
The other player? They don't know what they are protesting. They didn't budge an inch until Trump tried to tell them what they should do
Correct. As should anybody stand up to a dick-tator. Unless you're a masochistic sycophant who likes to bend over for that shit.