Kaepernick is a Provocateur, Not a Civil Rights Hero

Article by Nikki Halsted

Kaepernick is a provocateur—not a hero. It's as simple as that.

The only thing he deserves credit for is he started dialogue we, as a country, need to have. The kneeling itself, however, has become a divisive tool rather than a peaceful act of protest. He uses kneeling as the trigger, then sits back and lets everyone else erupt.

That's exactly what provocateurs do. Engage less in the dialogue and activism and more with the reactions and publicity. 

Glen Coffee? Brandon Tatum? Examples of present-day African American activists who have served their communities and country who are either overlooked or condemned by left-wing media because they thrive on thought-provoking over reaction-provoking discussion.

Whereas Kaepernick is vice versa.

Quite frankly, it baffles me how anyone could compare Kaepernick to MLK, Rosa Parks, or any remarkable civil rights leader. Don't even get me started on those who literally sacrifice everything (kind of like our servicemen) being amounted to less due to Kaepernick's falsified heroism.

Colin Kaepernick. The acclaimed civil rights hero—the one who apparently is on the front lines of battle against racism and the overbearing oppression which has plagued our country since the dawning of time.

Whereas he and his NFL buddies can pay a fat fine from their multimillion dollar paycheck and stay behind the cameras, the honorable people mentioned above did not have that pleasure.

The NFL protestors choose to bring protest to their job yet after the fact seem to not care enough to do anything else. As a matter of fact, any opportunity to visit the White House was denied due to "boycott" when that would've been a perfect time to make change happen. Right?

Yet where was Kaepernick? God forbid, the people glorifying Kaepernick are the same ones talking smack about Kim Kardashian going to the White House for prison reform yet proclaim she's a "joke."

Kaepernick, on the other hand, has his face inflated all over liberal media because suddenly the man's knees fall out every time the national anthem plays. And he's named Citizen of the Year and the new it-thing for Nike?

Change obviously isn’t the priority—making a political statement is.

What I find hilarious? This man should be promoting "change" while he's been doing this same exact crap with the kneeling for almost two years now.

Has any issue he's protesting improved? Nope. Has he at least tried executing any creativity or switching anything up? NO.

If I see one more person compare him to Rosa Parks, I may just lose it. Rosa Parks refused her seat ONCE. She ORGANIZED and LEAD after the fact. She immediately helped organize the Montgomery Bus Boycott which lasted for 361 days— not over two years.

She, along with MLK, did the opposite of what the NFL protestors are doing. They expanded through direct interaction within communities nationwide and brought like minded people together. There's no comparison. Her list completely outdoes Kaepernick. Yes, age has a role. Either way, he has not earned the title as a "hero" yet.

Maybe instead of comparing, NFL protestors should take note.

(Note: I can’t speak for or overgeneralize all NFL protestors. For those who have taken the initiative and not gotten adequate media coverage, I thank you.)

Not to mention—why protest the NFL? What did they do to anyone? They're the ones giving players huge opportunities (and salaries) that anyone would kill for.

Why protest the flag and a very small percentage of law enforcement officers? What laws are in place prohibiting racial minorities from any opportunities? 

Exactly. That's when you go into the community to beat social issues because that's where the most change will happen.

"It's not the flag, it's symbolic to racial oppression/police brutality/Trump being a racist in our country blah blah womp womp." Oh, okay! So, let's spend all our time kneeling repeatedly for the national anthem and put all energy towards the flag when that isn't even the issue.

I understand police brutality should be addressed with all due diligence, but isn't it strange how we almost never hear about it anymore? Especially since Kaepernick has had all cameras on him?

What about Black Lives Matter? We couldn’t get away from BLM headlines until after the election. Where are they now?

I'm not denying the issue on police brutality exists, but I am truly curious to know if this is the American society they claim is us, then why is there not a report on the news every week for a new police brutality case like there used to be? Why is police brutality towards African Americans one of the lowest statistics of gun violence in the U.S.?

Surely that has nothing to do with left-wing media stretching stories as a means of their political propaganda… Right?

If he is some civil rights hero, then where is he with speeches, well-developed arguments, statistics, facts, and everything else he can do to get the public on his side?

I can guarantee you if he had half of this information and the capacity to look at it objectively, he'd have a much different perspective. He makes this issue so one-sided and only includes the details relevant to him rather than seeing the larger picture. 

Where is he organizing? Leading? Strategizing? Where is he in our communities organizing events and bringing people together? Why isn't he in the White House looking politicians in the face demanding change? No, reaching out to a few military men to say, "Oh, it's nothing personal guys," is not valiant or honorable.

If anyone hasn't figured out why we've made zero progress, let's maybe look at the fact the protests send a message that's a broken narrative on replay.

I used to somewhat respect the decision to kneel. Now? It doesn't send a message anymore because the person behind it seemingly lacks all ingenuity. He knows his platform is too weak to stand on its own without the NFL. So, he's dragging them down with him. 

So please enlighten us on why Kaepernick is this high and mighty hero?

As if he's some brilliant thinker of our time yet expects his participation trophy to be exchanged for a peace prize because he learned he can receive false praise just by triggering people.

Call him what he is.... a provocateur. 

It's a shame someone with his platform misuses it whether he realizes it or not. In all honesty, he could have a lot more potential if he changes how he advocates these issues. He has the audacity that he can transform into courage.

I'm open to seeing him actually get off his knee and do something honorable, but until that day comes I will not champion him… And I won’t apologize, either.

Cover photo courtesy of Red Letter Christians