Then:
Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to quietly protest the slaughter of young black men by US law enforcement by taking a knee during the playing of the national anthem at NFL football games. Nobody noticed until right-wing shriek-programs began doing their usual, and soon, Colin Kaepernick was spitting on the graves of hero soldiers or something. I don’t know. Whatever FOX & Friends said he was doing.
Anyway, President Trump got in on the action, picking a fight with the NFL over letting black players exercise their freedom of speech. Owners, coaching staff, and many players reacted by taking a stand in defiance of the racist bully.
Or not.
Now:
Former 49ers star safety Eric Reid was the first player to join Colin Kaepernick in taking a knee. Reid is currently a free agent, which - for those who don’t follow football - is extraordinary. Players of Reid’s caliber get snapped up in the first hours of free agency. It’s unheard of for a player of good character, no injury concerns, and Reid’s talent to languish on the open market so long.
Recently, it appeared Reid would languish no more, as he was brought in for a visit with the Cincinnati Bengals. An obvious upgrade to their defense, Reid was a shoo-in - until owner Mike Brown asked about his plans for future leg bending. Reid had already issued a statement during his sojourn into the hinterlands of free agency, publicly declaring he would not be taking a knee during the anthem this year — likely to reassure teams who were avoiding him. This apparently wasn’t good enough for the Bengals, who pressed him about any other potential acts of freedom or independence.
When Reid was unable to satisfy them, he left town without a contract.
From the Bengals.
The Cincinnati Bengals, who have had 44 player arrests since 2000. That’s more than twice a year a player was arrested. The message was clear: We like our black players to be racist stereotypes, not peaceful activists for social justice.
Domestic violence, assault, possession of illicit substances? No problem.
Blatant, paid pro-war propaganda? Sign the Bengals up.
Eric Reid silently kneeling? Woah, now. Let’s not get crazy.
The treatment of Eric Reid (again, who has promised not to kneel) is telling. His situation is so bizarre, it has affected every free agent safety on the market, as lesser players are forced to wait for him to set the price tag for the services of a top-shelf safety. Teams refusing to sign him have left other free agent safeties in the wind, holding up signings all over the NFL. Astonishingly, the best explanation for the holdup is that teams don’t want to appear as if they’re blackballing Reid. Otherwise, they’d just reach past him to sign a less uppity player. It’s as if they don’t understand how obvious they’re being.
And this is just the guy who sat next to Kaepernick.
Meanwhile, 500 miles away, the Baltimore Ravens took the oh-so-brave step of not exactly ruling out signing Colin Kaepernick, until the heat came down, and they signed Robert Griffin III (a right wing darling for being rumored a Republican, but that’s a story for another time). In case you’re unaware, Griffin flunked out of the Washington Racist Mascots before being picked up and subsequently dropped by the Cleveland Browns like a hot, broken down, injury-riddled potato.
The Cleveland Fucking Browns.
It was a slap in the face to Colin Kaepernick, who is as accomplished a quarterback as Robert Griffin III, only without the body made of glass.
In case it wasn’t obvious, Donald Trump faced down the NFL, and the NFL blinked. All those stories of the NFL protesting en masse, linking arms in defiance of Trump? Yeah, forget that shit. The only stand NFL teams have taken is telling players to stand during the anthem - or else.
Donald Trump: 1
NFL: 0
As of this writing, Kaepernick and Reid are still free agents.
Here endeth the debate over whether or not Colin Kaepernick is being blackballed.