Colin Kaepernick refused to stand as a matter of conscience, given his feeling that the flag represents “a country that oppresses black people and people of color.”
“Labor to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire, called conscience.” – George Washington
He did so in the exercise of his freedom of speech.
“If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.” – George Washington
This is his constitutionally guaranteed right.
“The Constitution is the guide which I never will abandon.” – George Washington
Kaepernick did this because he felt attention needed to be drawn to this issue, and that this was his moral duty, because it is critical to speak truth to power.
“Truth will ultimately prevail where there is pains to bring it to light.” – George Washington
For this, he has been attacked and criticized as at best rude, and at worst a traitor to his country.
“It is better to be alone than in bad company.” – George Washington
Those who have criticized him tend to announce their love of country, and condemn his actions as unbecoming of a patriot.
“Guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism.” – George Washington
All you who stand and so loudly proclaim your outrage, and pronounce this man ungrateful…I do not know what exactly you are, but I know you are not patriots. Our founders knew that the higher allegiance was to the ideals of human rights: fair representation, equal treatment under the law, the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. In the document that announced their break from Britain, they acknowledged that if those ideals are not observed by a government, then the citizen owes that government no respect, despite any bonds or ties, and despite the natural inclination to bear unfair governance rather than risk change. By this standard, Kaepernick was being generous, as is every person of color who chooses polite and peaceful protest in the tradition of Dr. King, rather than the terrorism of the KKK to effect political change.
No, you are not patriots, despite what you tell yourselves. At best, you are tribalists who cling to a flag rather than observe the principles it represents. At worst, you are a gang that wears the colors of red, white and blue and claim the authority to truly interpret what this country really means, although you are utterly deprived of that authority by law, tradition, and history.
But I tell you this: my ancestors arrived among the pilgrims almost 400 years ago. They fought in King Phillip’s War, the Anglo-Dutch Wars, King William’s War, Queen Anne’s War, King George’s War, and the French-Indian War. My ancestors fought in the Revolution, the Second War for Independence, the various Indian Wars, the Mexican-American War, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, and the World Wars. One grandfather flew as a pilot in the Pacific. One helped develop the atomic bomb. And on behalf of my ancestors, who both built this country, but who also did so by benefitting from the blood, sweat and tears of the oppressed: I am ashamed of you. I am ashamed of your lack of knowledge, and your lack of perspective. I am ashamed that you try to claim kinship to my patriotic heritage, for I proudly claim Kaepernick as a brother in liberty. And for those of you who condemn him, I repudiate you. Kaepernick is a patriot. You are traitors to the ideals of this country.
And if you don’t like me saying that? If you find it offensive? Hmmm. Maybe you like political correctness where people try not to be offensive to each other more than you thought…at least when it applies to you.