As a black American student at ACU, I already have some contradictions about the school and stances taken on subjects like discrimination. The disappointing part of this article is that a white, upper-middle class male is telling black people how to deal with police brutality without any background or credible sources on what is happening in black communities. I agree with the reporter, we are not together as a nation, but if that is the case maybe we should all try to understand why America still isn’t a great place to live for minorities. Just because black NFL players make more money than the average black person per year does not mean they should not use their platform to stand up for injustices.
The same country that is, “Paying them loads of money to see their game and have them produce successful results,” also racially profiles, brutalizes, and is openly racist or discriminatory to minorities. The people who are paying them should show respect to the stances they are taking, not put them down for using their platform on social injustices that are prevalent to the entire nation.
White Americans expect black Americans to respect a flag, the independence, and the military of a country that did not fight for us. African-Americans weren’t free in America until after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, and it was not until June 19, 1865 that slaves knew about their freedom. This is also 89 years after white men were given equal opportunity in 1776, this doesn’t even factor in the civil rights movements throughout the 1950s and ‘60s and systematic racism that still goes on today.
Police brutality is not a debate, it is reality. Colin Kaepernick has pledged $1 million to teaching minorities how to deal with encounters with police officers and empowering oppressed communities. People like him are developing our broken down communities that will eventually build our nation back up from the cracks of systematic racism and will assemble us to turn our country from a tossed salad to a melting pot.
