SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Colin Kaepernick said he would not stand for the national anthem "to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color."
(Photo: Brook Ward/flickr/cc)
#VeteransForKaepernick Takes Off to Support Quarterback's Political Protest
"Don't use my service—or that of any veteran—to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch"
Aug 31, 2016
U.S. military veterans are speaking out in support of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, whose protest against the national anthem prompted a wave of criticism claiming he had disrespected veterans by not paying tribute to the American flag.
The hashtag #VeteransForKaepernick took off on Twitter this week in response to the right-wing outrage, and as Kaepernick himself clarified that his sit-down protest was only meant to critique state violence and oppression against people of color.
"I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country," he said Sunday. "I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. [But] people are dying in vain because this country isn't holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody."
The hashtag began trending Tuesday night as veterans posted photos of themselves in their military gear and noted the hypocrisy of the backlash against Kaepernick.
"I'd never try to shame someone with 'patriotism' in order to silence their 1st amend Right," one wrote.
"Don't use my service--or that of any veteran--to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch," said another.
Meanwhile, others pointed out that even the national anthem itself has a racist undertone, with one verse ending in a celebration of slavery. And as Oakland, California-based writer Elizabeth Ann Thompson wrote for The Progressive on Tuesday, "instead of being offended and reacting to Kap's protest, we should emulate his teammates in trying to understand where he is coming from. He is giving voice to the voiceless. He is speaking for Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray and the countless other black and brown folks who are killed by the police every year."
\u201cDon't use my service--or that of any veteran--to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch. \n\n#VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— charlotteclymer@mastodon.social (@charlotteclymer@mastodon.social) 1472614540
\u201c@Kaepernick7 I served 25yrs in the AF to protect everyone's 1st Amend rights. I support you #VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— Nicki Jai (@Nicki Jai) 1472610641
\u201c#VeteransForKaepernick because I didn't volunteer to defend a country where police brutality is swept under the rug.\u201d— Baltic Avenue (@Baltic Avenue) 1472611885
African American Woman who took a oath to serve & protect | I support this movement #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/7SYSt1DXLn
-- Traynesha Cole (@TrayneshaCole) August 31, 2016
\u201c#VeteransForKaepernick I am a disabled veteran & haven't stood for the Anthem since I separated. We are not free!\u201d— Kristen Meghan\ud83d\udc69\u200d\ud83d\udd2c\u270c\ufe0f\ud83d\udc3b\ud83c\udfc8 (@Kristen Meghan\ud83d\udc69\u200d\ud83d\udd2c\u270c\ufe0f\ud83d\udc3b\ud83c\udfc8) 1472614987
\u201cAdd me to the patriots who support this man and his rights along with his cause #VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— Brandon Gericke (@Brandon Gericke) 1472613383
On January 20th, it begins...
Political revenge. Mass deportations. Project 2025. Unfathomable corruption. Attacks on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Pardons for insurrectionists. An all-out assault on democracy. Republicans in Congress are scrambling to give Trump broad new powers to strip the tax-exempt status of any nonprofit he doesn’t like by declaring it a “terrorist-supporting organization.” Trump has already begun filing lawsuits against news outlets that criticize him. At Common Dreams, we won’t back down, but we must get ready for whatever Trump and his thugs throw at us. Our Year-End campaign is our most important fundraiser of the year. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. By donating today, please help us fight the dangers of a second Trump presidency. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
U.S. military veterans are speaking out in support of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, whose protest against the national anthem prompted a wave of criticism claiming he had disrespected veterans by not paying tribute to the American flag.
The hashtag #VeteransForKaepernick took off on Twitter this week in response to the right-wing outrage, and as Kaepernick himself clarified that his sit-down protest was only meant to critique state violence and oppression against people of color.
"I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country," he said Sunday. "I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. [But] people are dying in vain because this country isn't holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody."
The hashtag began trending Tuesday night as veterans posted photos of themselves in their military gear and noted the hypocrisy of the backlash against Kaepernick.
"I'd never try to shame someone with 'patriotism' in order to silence their 1st amend Right," one wrote.
"Don't use my service--or that of any veteran--to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch," said another.
Meanwhile, others pointed out that even the national anthem itself has a racist undertone, with one verse ending in a celebration of slavery. And as Oakland, California-based writer Elizabeth Ann Thompson wrote for The Progressive on Tuesday, "instead of being offended and reacting to Kap's protest, we should emulate his teammates in trying to understand where he is coming from. He is giving voice to the voiceless. He is speaking for Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray and the countless other black and brown folks who are killed by the police every year."
\u201cDon't use my service--or that of any veteran--to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch. \n\n#VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— charlotteclymer@mastodon.social (@charlotteclymer@mastodon.social) 1472614540
\u201c@Kaepernick7 I served 25yrs in the AF to protect everyone's 1st Amend rights. I support you #VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— Nicki Jai (@Nicki Jai) 1472610641
\u201c#VeteransForKaepernick because I didn't volunteer to defend a country where police brutality is swept under the rug.\u201d— Baltic Avenue (@Baltic Avenue) 1472611885
African American Woman who took a oath to serve & protect | I support this movement #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/7SYSt1DXLn
-- Traynesha Cole (@TrayneshaCole) August 31, 2016
\u201c#VeteransForKaepernick I am a disabled veteran & haven't stood for the Anthem since I separated. We are not free!\u201d— Kristen Meghan\ud83d\udc69\u200d\ud83d\udd2c\u270c\ufe0f\ud83d\udc3b\ud83c\udfc8 (@Kristen Meghan\ud83d\udc69\u200d\ud83d\udd2c\u270c\ufe0f\ud83d\udc3b\ud83c\udfc8) 1472614987
\u201cAdd me to the patriots who support this man and his rights along with his cause #VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— Brandon Gericke (@Brandon Gericke) 1472613383
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
U.S. military veterans are speaking out in support of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, whose protest against the national anthem prompted a wave of criticism claiming he had disrespected veterans by not paying tribute to the American flag.
The hashtag #VeteransForKaepernick took off on Twitter this week in response to the right-wing outrage, and as Kaepernick himself clarified that his sit-down protest was only meant to critique state violence and oppression against people of color.
"I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country," he said Sunday. "I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. [But] people are dying in vain because this country isn't holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody."
The hashtag began trending Tuesday night as veterans posted photos of themselves in their military gear and noted the hypocrisy of the backlash against Kaepernick.
"I'd never try to shame someone with 'patriotism' in order to silence their 1st amend Right," one wrote.
"Don't use my service--or that of any veteran--to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch," said another.
Meanwhile, others pointed out that even the national anthem itself has a racist undertone, with one verse ending in a celebration of slavery. And as Oakland, California-based writer Elizabeth Ann Thompson wrote for The Progressive on Tuesday, "instead of being offended and reacting to Kap's protest, we should emulate his teammates in trying to understand where he is coming from. He is giving voice to the voiceless. He is speaking for Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray and the countless other black and brown folks who are killed by the police every year."
\u201cDon't use my service--or that of any veteran--to justify the silencing of black Americans. Not on my watch. \n\n#VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— charlotteclymer@mastodon.social (@charlotteclymer@mastodon.social) 1472614540
\u201c@Kaepernick7 I served 25yrs in the AF to protect everyone's 1st Amend rights. I support you #VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— Nicki Jai (@Nicki Jai) 1472610641
\u201c#VeteransForKaepernick because I didn't volunteer to defend a country where police brutality is swept under the rug.\u201d— Baltic Avenue (@Baltic Avenue) 1472611885
African American Woman who took a oath to serve & protect | I support this movement #VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/7SYSt1DXLn
-- Traynesha Cole (@TrayneshaCole) August 31, 2016
\u201c#VeteransForKaepernick I am a disabled veteran & haven't stood for the Anthem since I separated. We are not free!\u201d— Kristen Meghan\ud83d\udc69\u200d\ud83d\udd2c\u270c\ufe0f\ud83d\udc3b\ud83c\udfc8 (@Kristen Meghan\ud83d\udc69\u200d\ud83d\udd2c\u270c\ufe0f\ud83d\udc3b\ud83c\udfc8) 1472614987
\u201cAdd me to the patriots who support this man and his rights along with his cause #VeteransForKaepernick\u201d— Brandon Gericke (@Brandon Gericke) 1472613383
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.