What Colin Kaepernick’s National Anthem Protest Tells Us About America |
What Colin Kaepernick’s National Anthem Protest Tells Us About America
Rolling Stone
2016-08-29
When black athletes choose to point their aggression towards larger, systematic inequalities, there’s always backlash
The role of the famous black athlete has been a polarizing one for as long as sports have dominated American headlines, going all the way back a century to when Jack Johnson beat white boxer Jim Jeffries in 1910. During Johnson’s time, he was regarded as a “bad nigger,” not only because he was articulate and handsome, but also because he beat his white rivals. It was a direct representation of black masculinity as a threat to white supremacy. In recent times, however, this kind of resistance has evolved. From track and field medal winners Tommie Smith and John Carlos raising their fists as a Black Power salute at the 1968 Olympics to WNBA players wearing Black Lives Matter T-shirts, black athletes are expanding their sportsmanship into political activism.
Last Friday, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the National Anthem during a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. By Saturday morning, what should have been a meaningless football game was dominating the national news…
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Tags: Colin Kaepernick, football, Morgan Jerkins, Rolling Stone, San Francisco 49ers, sports