Colin Kaepernick's Protests

Improved Essays
In today’s society we have many different views of how it functions. Some people take a stand to change it while others leave it as it is. Usually people will criticize or question your actions depending on their view. Referring to all of this, a huge national debate would occur due to a football player’s action. On September. 1 a NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick took a kneel as the national anthem was being played. After this incident many more people started following his protest. There has been many question to his protest, but what I will be answering is whether Kaepernick and his supporters have the right to be protesting. My thought is yes, they have the right to protest against this situation, because of the rights stated in the Declaration …show more content…
He said “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” (Kaepernick). This shows his motives to his protest. He has the right to protest for this cause, because according to the Declaration of Independence “...all men are created equal...Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” (Jefferson). He noticed that the constitution wasn’t living up to what it said and his race wasn’t being treated equal as it was supposed to be when mentioned in the Declaration of Independence. Therefore he chose to not stand up and show pride for the national flag of the country.
Another evidence giving them the right to protest is the following “Congress shall make no law respecting...to petition on the government for a redress of grievance.” (Madison 1). This amendment states that citizens have the rights to protest against the government when they have a problem with how things are. In this case Kaepernick and his supporters are kneeling to protest for their right in the country. People are calling their action unpatriotic, but they are only attempting to address the government of their concern of how society is treating them which is allowed according to the
…show more content…
In Tulsa, Okla, a man named Terence Crutcher was brutally murdered, by a police officer. “...posing little threat to the officer...He was unarmed...one officer described as “a bad dude.” (Glaude). According to the reporter Gluade shows how a African American who showed no sign of resistance was murdered due to his skin color. This is an example of racial discrimination and therefore the African American community is protesting against this cause,because this is not constitutional. This goes back to the Declaration of Independence where all men are considered equal. People who witnessed these deaths don’t believe they’re being treated equally. Supporting the idea, the Declaration of Independence was written by the Americans to fight against oppression from Britain, so they should also have the rights to fight against oppression from another group

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