In what has become his trademark style of making a powerful statement without saying a word, Kaepernick comes through once again on Jackie Robinson day with one of Robinson’s quotes that are rarely shared by the predominantly white media. Robinson explicitly stated that he would not stand for the national anthem, a perfectly reasonable and, frankly, sensible response to the persistence of racism in America. In sharing this quote in particular, Kaepernick continues to signal his dedication to the lawful exercise of his rights and highlighting the scourge of racism.
Seminal Black figures like Jackie Robinson are often presented in sanitized, non-threatening manners in a patronizing attempt to inform Blacks whom we should admire and emulate. It accounts for the incessant references to Martin Luther King, Jr. as if he were our collective father. It is for this reason that such powerful quotes and actions by these figures are so important as they reflect both the fact these are multi-dimensional human beings, and that there is a clear agenda of white revisionism and control afoot.
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