Wednesday, May 3, 2017

When is a Peaceful Protester Worse Than a Woman Beater?

Did you know that the Cincinnati Bengals drafted a player who was videotaped punching a woman and breaking her jaw? Where were all of the social media posts protesting this move? There was little outcry about the injustice done to women around the world by the NFL. I didn't see large groups of people threatening to boycott the Bengals for drafting Joe Mixon (that's his name, by the way). Social media was very quiet before, during and after the draft.

Meanwhile, let's go back to 2016. A pro football player decided to take a knee during the National Anthem in protest for the way African-Americans are treated by police. Many Americans viewed his protest as anti-patriotic and a slap in the face (figuratively) to those men and women who have served in the military. There were a lot of folks who said Colin Kaepernick didn't deserve to live in America anymore, much less play in the NFL.

What's wrong with this picture? Where is the righteous indignation from Americans about Mixon being given a job with the NFL and Kaepernick is still looking for work? I don't claim to be the smartest man in the world, but I feel pretty confident that we should be more upset about a man who brutally beats a woman versus a man who holds a silent protest by kneeling during the National Anthem.

Do I think someone is wrong for being against someone who protests? Absolutely not. I just think we need to spend a little more time thinking before we start firing off the posts and jumping on the bandwagon. If you think Kaepernick doesn't deserve to play on a pro football team because of his beliefs, you should be just as vocal about the NFL employing players who are women beaters, drug abusers and general law breakers. You can't do one without the other.

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