San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick sat and all hell broke loose. But somehow, the reason he gave for remaining in his seat at the playing of the National Anthem has been completely forgotten.
"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."
Let's not even touch the fact that protesting is as American as football, apple pie, and Soul Food. Media types insist on discussing Kaepernick the man — what he wears, is he black enough, the manner of the protest — rather than the cause he’s adopted. What we see unfolding in front of our very eyes is a mass indulgence in argumentum ad hominem. Were I an academic observer I’d be just fascinated by the evolution of the discussion and how quickly the debate became about disrespecting the military and the sacrifices of the fallen. But I am not just a spectator; I’m a black woman who has skin in this twisted game, and as such, I need the spotlight to remain firmly fixed on the real issues. So let’s focus on Mr. Kaepernick’s statement and ask ourselves: is it true or not? Are there bodies in the street and are the killers getting away with murder? And if that’s true, what are we gonna do about it?
The police are our most readily accessible symbol of the state’s power over our daily existence. Their role in our society, in our communities, and in our lives deserves to be examined and discussed.
It seems to me that Kaepernick is talking about police accountability and it is a damn shame that instead of following his lead, the MSM is intent on muddying the waters. The cop who shot Levonia Riggins is on paid leave. The two deputies who killed Dante Taylor — the gunman they said shot at them forcing them to return fire but no gun has been found after the most extensive search — are still on the job. The officer who pepper-sprayed an 84-yr-old woman in her home has faced no disciplinary actions as far as we know. The killers of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile were all placed on administrative leave...with pay.
No one has yet to be held accountable for the death of Freddie Gray who was alive and well before being detained and put into that police wagon.
That same fact still applies to almost ALL of the young African-American men and women who have been shot or choked or beaten to death by police or who have died in police custody —despite all the publicity about these police crimes. And that is why there is so little trust in communities of color for the police that are supposed to serve them and keep them safe. There are always reasons — or technicalities, or decisions not to indict or have trials, or other complications or distractions, or blatant police or city cover-ups — to explain why no police or local officials who have done wrong have been prosecuted and sent to jail. The end result: Nobody is held accountable.
Police will not hold each other accountable
Police Chiefs will not discipline “bad apples”
Grand Juries will not indict cops
The incestuous relationship between District Attorneys and police makes it well nigh impossible to get a conviction for murderous and other egregious acts
Jurors routinely give cops the benefit of the doubt...especially if the victims are of color
The unwillingness of federal judges to hold bad cops accountable is a principal cause of police brutality. [...]
But when bad cops break the law, they should not be given the "benefit of the doubt" and should not be given immunity. They should be sanctioned, and the victims of their misconduct should be made whole with reasonable compensation.
Mr. Kaepernick is clearly and undeniably correct in his assessment of the situation, wouldn’t you say?
What do we do? Colin Kaepernick is doing his part by sittingkneeling . We applaud him. Btw, how about some white athletes joining him? Are they not troubled by what they see happening around them and what they hear from their black friends in the locker room? Who will be the next Chris Kluwe?
Action!
Changing the status quo is not easy...has never been easy. It’s going to take a lot of hard work. Standing in the way of police reform and justice are the powerful police union, and judges, and District Attorneys, and politicians, and the repulsive NRA combined with complacency and even encouragement from some quarters. But if you are disgusted at the sight of a cop pepper-spraying an old woman directly in her face, and the fact that the perpetrator is not immediately fired, then help us fight back. If you are scared, outraged, or sickened at the idea of 92 people dying at the hands of police in one month, then help us get our Michael Brown Over-Policed Rights Act signed into law. Please. Lives are at stake.
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Members of the Daily Kos group Support the Dream Defenders launched four ongoing projects:
1. We came together to support the Dream Defenders in Florida and their mission, our first project and the origin of our name. The Dream Defendersdefend the Dream of Martin Luther King Jr. by "develop[ing] the next generation of radical leaders to realize and exercise our independent collective power; building alternative systems and organizing to disrupt the structures that oppress our communities." Please donate here.
2. Our Michael Brown Over-Policed Rights Act, crowd-sourced at Daily Kos in the fall of 2014 after the death of Michael Brown. Our bill quickly earned endorsements from the NAACP and the ACLU. The NAACP forwarded our bill to members of Congress, and we distributed it to members of the Congressional Black Caucus and other progressive members of Congress. President Obama signed into a law a small piece of our bill in December 2014. The Department of Justice included parts of our law in their reports on Ferguson, Missouri, in 2015. Our state version of the MBOPRA is currently in committee in the Kansas legislature.
3. Our Freedom of Information Act project. Nineteen Republican governors chose to kill poor people by not expanding Medicaid. Ebola has killed about 9000 people in total; Republican governors kill 23,000 people PER YEAR by refusing federal support for Medicaid, a story ignored by traditional media. Our project forces those governors to out themselves, clapping them in a Catch 22. With the support of readers, we publicize our results through letters to the editor, press releases, and petitions.
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