Editor,
In a recent conversation with a friend about NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for the national anthem, my friend questioned Kaepernick’s sincerity.
My friend said, “This guy has played in the NFL for years and all of a sudden he gives a damn about race relations?” The simple fact of the matter is that people can change and only God really knows what’s in a man or woman’s heart. Colin Kaepernick, whether you agree with his point of view or not, should be afforded the same freedom of speech rights as another U.S. citizen, and calls for him to “move to another country” show a deep ignorance of the First Amendment.
Kaepernick explained his action by saying, “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.”
Is this statement untrue? Haven’t we seen multiple recordings from across the U.S. which appear to show police officers killing what appear to be mostly unarmed black men? Law and order should be not used as an excuse to take away any American citizens’ God-given right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
Kaepernick and the Black Lives Matter movement should be commended for raising the national awareness of police mistreatment of minorities and for continuing the nonviolent tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.
It is also commendable that for the sake of peace and reconciliation individuals and groups hold fast to the principle of nonviolence when it comes to challenging an unjust status quo. Not all cops are bad, but when the bad ones are not held accountable it poisons the relationship between the police and the community members they swore to protect.
Demonizing those who disagree with you is ultimately counterproductive, because people are famous for changing their minds. Mahatma Gandhi put it well when he said, “You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.” Whether we like it or not, we are all one human family and we are all in the same boat.
Muhajir Romero
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