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Russell Okung Weighs in on Colin Kaepernick’s Decision to Sit During National Anthem

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If you’ve turned on the television or got on any form of social media over the last week, you’ve likely heard about the controversy surrounding Colin Kaepernick — the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers who has chosen to sit during the national anthem. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick said to the NFL media following a preseason game last week.

And on a military salute night Thursday, Kaepernick again refused to stand for the anthem, instead choosing to kneel with safety Eric Reid in the pregame.

Naturally, everyone has an opinion on the subject. And former Oklahoma State offensive tackle, now with the Denver Bronco’s, penned an article with the Players Tribune giving his take on the situation:

It’s important to recognize the distinction between our country’s symbols — such as the flag or the anthem — and the military, or our country as a whole. The flag is a powerful symbol of Americanism — a concept that includes freedom of speech, freedom of assembly andfreedom as a whole.

Okung brings up the 1968 scenario in which Tommie Smith and John Carlos, two Olympic medal winners, used their stage at the summer games to make a statement in raising their fist to signify their support for the civil rights movement.

Ultimately, Okung encourages athletes to use their platform they’ve been dealt, and that we as people should be welcome to unique approaches.

My challenge to athletes, and to anyone else who has a platform available to them, is to be passionate and creative in your thinking and approach. There are so many different ways to address injustice in this country. We can’t all try to solve these problems in the exact same way, and we should welcome a diversity of approaches.

It’s a pretty fascinating and well-thought out response to all the noise surrounding the increasingly messy situation. You can read the entire article here.

 

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