Colin Kaepernick's Theoretical Analysis

Earlier this semester, we looked at the numerous events where Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem during NFL games. Colin Kaepernick’s political statement and action where he did not stand for the national anthem at these various San Francisco 49ers football games has brought great attention to the sports world, as well as American society. It has sparked controversy nationwide when Kaepernick claimed that the American flag prides the oppression of black people and people of color in general. These series of events have a dialectic relationship with the broader forces seen within our contemporary society. Over the progression of the semester, we have returned to further discuss the topic within this paper. There are many broader forces that mutually reinforce the Kaepernick’s actions, and we can see this through politics, race/ethnicity, and American nationalism seen within the country.

In regards to our government and political system, the United States most closely resembles neoliberal capitalism. One of the roles in an

ideal neoliberal capitalist society is the role of government to create a business/friendly climate for the growth of private capital (Beissel, 2016, Lecture 2). Once Kaepernick started to protest and refuse to stand for the national anthem, he started receiving a lot of publicity for his stunt. This stunt was a hegemonic action that influenced a mass amount of NFL players. Eventually, many people started following his footsteps, including Denver Broncos’ linebacker Brandon Marshall. Both players had their private endorsements, however unlike Kaepernick, Marshall lost his endorsement deals after protesting against our nations flag (Tuttle, 2016). Through these given events, we can see how Kaepernick’s action inspired others to join him in partaking in a protest. Through this protest, this affected a player’s image and so our neoliberal capitalist society was affected in terms of private endorsements and capital (Whiteside, 2013). Another way our political system and Kaepernick’s protest dialectically affect each other was seen through our recent presidential election. Kaepernick, who is biracial, became a lightening rod during the NFL season when he refused to stand for the national anthem. Within recent events, our presidential election took place, however Kaepernick did not partake in it. Kaepernick claims to see this election as the choosing of the lesser two evils. Given his stance in oppression of color, Kaepernick did not vote and sparked even more controversy. Eventually his actions led to him receiving death threats, and he has also come under fire from the President-elect himself, as Trump called out the NFL quarterback during his campaign (Martin, 2016).
Another way we have seen Kaepernick’s political stand dialectically influenced by society is through the concept of race and ethnicity. Initially, the initial issue at hand is the presence of inequality within this day of age amongst all races. We saw that many African Americans were wrongfully killed by police officers for allegedly committing crime. Kaepernick vowed to not stand for a flag that “prides oppression”. Given our history, typically white men have always been in power and seen as superior to people of color. Given this hierarchy due to race, this typology of the racial social construct has been created (Beissel, 2016, Lecture 8). Denying the scientific existence of race does not deny the existence of race as a social construct, and does not deny the very real impacts of racism (Herbert, 2012). Through Kaepernick’s actions, we saw a gradual change throughout the NFL and throughout our society as a whole. People started to realize the lens that Kaepernick saw through and joined him in his bow of silence in the fight against racial inequality. This included both players and fans during these NFL games (Wagoner, 2016). Likewise, we see that this change in society fueled Kaepernick to keep fighting for his beliefs. This realization of racial and ethnicity issues have kept Kaepernick going through his silent protest through this dialectical relationship.
The last sociological concept that can be seen in a dialectical relationship with Kaerpernick’s political stand is through the concept of American nationalism. Within our imagined nation, we live with a sense of communitas and national identity through our shared experiences, feelings, and interests (Anderson, 1983). During times of crisis, people within a nation unite in order to share these experiences and feelings of belonging. Through the portrayal of television and social media, Kaepernick became ideal image of cool nationalism, where he expressed his indifference toward the nation, and his reluctance to acknowledge it as a source of identity (Beissel, 2016, Lecture 12). His participation in cool nationalism led others to follow his footsteps and do the same. Given this shift in nationalism within the United States, Kaepernick can now identify with the people also showing cool nationalism. He can share his identity and experiences with these people. Given all these concepts, we can see that there is a key dialectic relationship between Kaerpernick’s political stand and the broader forces of our society.
At the beginning of the semester, I agreed with Colin Kaepernick’s manner of activism as he sat down during the playing of the national anthem.

After a semester of KNES293 and learning about the broader societal forces, I still agree Kaepernick’s statement. In fact, after learning about these forces, I believe my stance of Kaepernick’s statement has been strengthened. Given that Kaepernick has developed so much influence and support from others, I believe his participation in this protest was meaningful and right. Through political, racial, and nationalistic forces, Kaepernick was able to spread his message and develop awareness for the apparent racial equality within our nation. For me, my position on Kaepernick’s statement has been strengthened through the idea of cool nationalism. Through sharing my feelings and experiences with the greater population, I find myself to still believe in Kaepernick’s manner of

activism.