NFL QB National Anthem Protest

NIKE knows their core demo, and it's not Trump voters. At this point the resentment toward Kaepernick is just naked racism.

Still, NIKE is making a shrewd market bet. UnderArmour tried to aligned themselves with redneck hunting culture and guns, etc., and saw their market share dip.

NIKE is a top selling international brand and taking a moral stand against police brutality in the long run should prove to be a winner.
When you're the top selling sports apparel brand in China with a 12% market share, you can afford to blow off sales to White Trump voters.

LOL. Kaepernick isn't even in the NFL anymore and Trump voters are still hating on him. He hasn't taken a knee going on two NFL seasons, so what are Trump voters still mad about??

They said they didn't want him to protest during games or 'disrespect' the flag.
Done and done.

So what's the real issue??

If NIKE was a major company in the 1960s and made ads featuring MLK and Malcolm X, the exact same people would be burning their NIKE gear calling them un-American.

 

Average Trump voters didn't have an issue with Kaepernick until Trump went in on him.

Don't try to paint Kaepernick like he's a bad guy or malcontent. No one really had an issue about him before Trump did.
You're trying to justify the bullshit hate towards him that's based on basically nothing.

 

Disagree.
Most Americans love our flag and anthem. It's those who don't that applaud his thumbing his nose at both.
He also has not really utilized his platform in any meaningful way since.
Making donations here and there (unrelated to police shootings) is par for the course for many athletes.. so.

What you do see is his focus on his conspiracy lawsuit against the NFL to get his job back. Might be hard considering he himself turned down his contract offer with the 49ers, wanting more money. And that the Ravens were about to offer him a contract when Nessa called the Owner a slave Master and Ray Lewis his Slave. (Ray convinced the owner to hire Colin).

Also, he's quite busy marketing himself. He's lifted a hashtag from a supporter - the "I'm with Kap" and applied to copyright it for merchandise. So coming to a store near you, you can buy T-shirts caps pens, coffee mugs keychains etc etc etc.

"...According to TMZ Sports, the 30-year-old filed paperwork in California to place the words on T-shirts, hats, hoodies and other merchandise....

Kaepernick is far from strapped for cash. The former QB earned nearly $40 million during his time in the league, along with his sponsorship deals...."

That's why people are laughing at Nike/his,
"(I) sacrificed everything".

 

Colin's protest was never about the flag. Get that right first. He was protesting police brutality. Stop spinning it into something unpatriotic.

Also, Colin refused contract offers from NFL teams because they wanted a guarantee he wouldn't protest before games anymore. It had nothing at all to do with money.

Be honest, you know hardly anything about CK except what the right wing has said about him.

To diminish all his philanthropic and charitable work to, "well, all athletes donate money," is just ridiculous.
https://bleacherreport.com/articles...tivism-outlined-in-sports-illustrated-profile

https://kaepernick7.com/media/

 

Not mutually exclusive, AB. His own words:

“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. 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.”

 

You're going to find yourself in a ditch if you really try to go after Black people and Colin in particular for not being more 'patriotic'.

Most of my family still doesn't celebrate the 4th of July all that seriously because the flag and this country doesn't mean the same to us as it does to non-Blacks.

Colin didn't randomly decide he was going to disrespect the flag by kneeling. There were other issues he was trying to highlight. Instead the POTUS tried to politicize Kaepernick's protest into some fundamentally un-American act.

I don't know what's more American than standing up for social justice and civil rights.

 

Who told you it was based on if he wouldn't kneel? Do you have inside knowledge, AB? Lol.

Here's what we know pertaining to any talk of him standing, and according to CBS, it didn't come from owners, but colin himself.....:

Colin said to a reporter he would abdicate kneeling for a season and stand if he was re-hired:..

News reports based on a claim made by a CBS reporter, who has since resiled from them.

According to a breaking news report from the Associated Press, on former San Francisco 49ers second string quarterback Colin Kaepernick:

Below is the tweet:

BREAKING: Quarterback Colin Kaepernick tells CBS he’ll stand during national anthem if given chance to play football in NFL again.

— The Associated Press (@AP) October 8, 2017

According to CBS News, which sat down with the out-of-work NFLer for “several hours,” Kaepernick is actively looking for work, and is willing to abdicate his year-long national anthem protest

The sports web site Bleacher Report similarly reported:

Free-agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who remains unsigned after sitting or kneeling during the national anthem throughout the 2016 season, said he plans to stand if signed by an NFL team. Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports revealed Kaepernick’s intentions Sunday.

These reports (and others) were ultimately based on claims made by CBS reporter Jason La Canfora, who has since resiled from these claims. The Daily Wire’s story has been updated to reflect that, and the Associated Press has deleted its tweet.
However, as of press time, the Daily Wire’s article retained its original headline “QB Colin Kaepernick Now Says He’ll Stand for the National Anthem If He’s Signed to a Team.” As of press time, the Bleacher Report has not yet updated its story.

On 7 October 2017, CBS reporter Jason La Canfora appeared on the show NFL Today and summarized a conversation he had had with Kaepernick. During that segment, La Canfora described the player’s determination to return to an NFL team, and claimed:

"He’s not planning on kneeling, he’s going to donate all his jersey sales, and he’s planning on standing for the anthem, if given the opportunity."

 

Eric Reid, his teammate in SF, is the one who wouldn't promise not to kneel if he was signed by another team.
What does it mater??

Kaepernick isn't going to play in the NFL again and he's pursuing a higher cause.
As someone who is so anti-Kaepernick, one would think you'd be happy the headache was gone and you can now watch the NFL is peace.

 

Americans who dislike him protesting the flag and anthem aren't "in any ditch" nor are they going after "Blacks" or "Colin".
It's been stated repeatedly, his method to disrespect the flag and anthem is offensive to many. He had an enormous platform to choose from, yet chose the most vile path.

The flag and all its glory allows him the freedom to protest against police brutality. So go protest it then. It's like him slapping his woman to protest domestic violence.

 

I'm not anti-Colin, his stance on actual oppression and brutality (as a woman l relate) is perfectly fine to me. I just dislike his tearing down our flag and anthem to get attention. Simple.

 

He's pursuing a lawsuit to get his job back. Lol.

 

Yup! In addition to not "staying in his place"... He's still making $$$. Both will make their heads explode.

 

It's all about Colin. Always has been, always will be.

 

This is the part of his statement... "I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," I don't feel like he disrespected the flag or anyone else. I think most opposed intentionally ignored his statement and made it about something he never said because he dared to rock the boat. I feel it's totally about a person of color and being an "overpaid athlete" daring to not simply shutup, and be thankful for his millions.

 

Disagree.
A plethora of players have Causes they believe in and while the NFL (ironically) restricted their speech, they didn't do it in a way that offends the core binding structure that represents all of us. Our flag. (& anthem.)

Does the flag not represent you? Do you refuse to honor it or stand for our anthem? I'm assuming you're against police brutality. Can you respect and honor your flag and still be against brutality? Of course. I know l can. Can you?

 

A polite protest is an ignored protest.

 

That's OK if you disagree. I recognize that it's your right as it is Kaepernick's right to feel the way he does. To say he hates this country, disrespecting the military (as many including the POTUS says) is totally people making the narrative what they want it to be and disregarding Kaepernick's actual statement.

 

I think you want Kaeprnick back in the NFL so you have a more legitimate reason to hate on him.
Once Colin decided to sue the NFL, he ended his NFL career. So no, it's not about the money for CK otherwise he would sign any old deal and get back in the league.

What anti-Kaepernick people don't understand is that Colin has been sponsored by NIKE since his rookie year. He's got money and will be fine if he never plays another down of football again.
He doesn't have to sellout to stand up for his principles.

 

This, all day! So many of his haters have said that he needs to simply shutup and be thankful. Thankfully, he's principled and not having that crap.

 

Do you believe Colin's NFL protest was about specifically disrespecting the flag?? Or is that what you choose to believe because you really don't care what he was protesting about??

Sorry, but I look at most people with a strong side eye who profess so much love and respect for the 'flag'.

A flag doesn't grant anyone freedom to do a damn thing.

And comparing slapping a woman to protest domestic violence to what Colin is doing is the most bizarre comparison I've ever read.

That flag has been unfurled to do some really heinous shit domestically and around the world and for that reason alone I'm never going to treat it like it's some sacred artifact.

Americans are supposed to believe in ideals and the rule of law, not symbols that are empty without the actions of people behind them.

I simply do not believe real Americans are this upset because a football player took a knee before a game during the National Anthem.
Most Americans don't even know the words to the National Anthem.