#davesdailychallenge (144) – An Open Letter to Colin Kaepernick.

Dear Mr. Kaepernick,

We don’t know each other but I’ve followed your NFL career with excitement since you were drafted. The San Francisco 49ers are my favorite football team. I grew up cheering for Joe Montana, Jerry Rice, and Tom Rathman along with all of the other legends during that wonderful era. I cheered you on as you helped take the team to the NFC Championship twice and even a Super Bowl. I have no doubt that since you refused to stand for the national anthem a week ago that you have been bombarded with messages ranging from wholehearted support to outright hate and everything in between. If you did know me personally, you’d know how I feel about mistakes and growth. We all screw up. We all exercise poor judgement coupled with the best of intentions. We all make decisions based on ignorance, half-truths, or inaccurate information. What matters is what we do after these lapses in judgement. Instead of falling in line with so many others and spitting hate and vitriol towards you and your recent actions I’d request you take a minute and read this. I don’t hate you. I have experienced hate and cruelty the likes of which few people will ever know and I know what that looks like. I don’t feel that towards what you did. Instead, I see a young man with a very specific skill set that doesn’t necessarily lead to a holistic and mature world view. I know you had a unique childhood and familial background and I respect that. 

Among other things I am a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and was fortunate enough to lead Marines in combat during the zenith of the war in Iraq. From the experiences of war, I learned many valuable lessons but chief among them I experienced what it means to fight for an idea and a group of people with your very life and the lives of people you care about. There is a saying that circulates among combat veterans.

“For those who fought for it, freedom has a taste the protected will never know.”

Regardless of your many accomplishments please know that you are the protected. I don’t say this to you to put you down. Far from it…I say it to communicate a candid truth. You might not know it but there are millions of combat veterans throughout the history of this great nation that have fought for the idea that is America. Many have died in this pursuit. While this country is far from perfect, those that laid their lives on the line deserve better than what you did. Let me be very clear here because I don’t want there to be any confusion. Racial inequality exists in this country…absolutely. Human beings are imperfect creatures and our works reflect that imperfection. You have every right that is bestowed upon an American citizen. I have no more rights than you do. We are both Americans and you should take tremendous pride in that fact. You should recognize and celebrate that even though you have done nothing to directly earn them, other than being born in an American state, our shared rights are bestowed upon you and protected by those willing to fight in their name. The American flag and the national anthem are two symbols of these rights and they represent all of the things you claim to value. You stayed seated during the playing of our national anthem and your reason was quoted as:

“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.”

There are certainly layers of subtext to this statement but outside of trying to guess the specifics of what you meant please know that the national anthem of this country is much bigger than what you are referencing. I have no doubt that the reasons you did this from your own point of view were right. It’s not my place to question that in the slightest. It is, however, my place to offer the notion that the manner in which you went about it was in direct opposition to the goals you claim to value. Your message and the actions you took to spread it are two very different things. There are much better ways to spread this message than insulting the very values that support your implicit objectives. You have money, star power, and a pulpit to spread your opinions that few others will ever know. Even better than focusing on spreading a message would be to actually do something about it. Use your resources to enact the change you want to see.

Every military unit I’ve ever been a part of was extraordinarily diverse. We came from every feasible ethnic and social background. We had vastly disparate world views and financial capabilities. However, we were not focused on what separated us. We cared about what united us. We were Marines and we had a common purpose. We looked at each other and saw men and women, not black, brown, or white men and women. This reminds me of another type of “unit” I’ve been a part of. A competitive athletic team. The next time you dress for a game I challenge you to look around at your fellow players. You will again see one of the most diverse groups of people on the planet. Folks from every different type of background all there for a single unified purpose. The Marine Corps and a football team look a lot alike in that way. 

To conclude, I know you feel like you’re in the right. The lens through which you see the world told you that this was the right thing to do. I know that your message and your actions are two different things. I hope that next time you remember that people of every sex, creed, color, and orientation have risked their very lives to uphold the values that the national anthem of this country represents. You have the freedom of speech that these people protected but you are not free from the consequences of that speech.

I hope you find the maturity and the growth that you need. Good luck.