How Race Hustling Makes a Case for the American Dream
And what Colin Kaepernick doesn't want you to know
It's been quite a roller coaster in the last 245 years in this experiment we call America. We've done some incredible things, like help save the world from the Axis powers during WW2 and produce The Eagles. But we've also done some not-incredible things, like enslave people and segregate them. While we've made a lot of progress since the Civil Rights movement, we know racism will always exist in some form. Still, some people want racism because it's their livelihood. And for people race hustling like Colin Kaepernick, business is a boomin'.
Free labor drove profit in the days of slavery, but people can make a living today by falsely calling out racism and taking creative liberties where needed.
Colin Kaepernick makes a decent living for himself as a race hustler, but he'd have you think the American Dream is a myth-even though he's made more money than the majority of Americans.
Yet, he doesn't understand that he continues to make a case for the American Dream in his antics.
In a recent video, he claims not only does racism exist, but the NFL Scouting Combine is comparable to an 1800s slave auction.
Yeah, this one's a doozy.
Quarterback to Race Hustler
Part of what makes the United States glorious is the opportunity, and that's why so many people risk their lives to get here. I mean, if non-whites really thought they would be subject to white supremacy by entering the US, would they make the trek that claims so many lives?
No, they'll do anything to make their American Dream come true, even if that means working menial jobs as they progress.
And Colin Kaepernick lived his American Dream when he played for the San Francisco 49ers between 2012 and 2016.
Unfortunately for him, Kaepernick hit the bench in 2015 after a shoulder injury. At this point, Kaepernick likely knew the NFL wouldn't be a long-term venture.
However, once his football career began to decline, he made a move. From a business standpoint, this was a clever play.
Rather than fade into obscurity like so many others, he found a way to continue getting recognition and compensation.
By race hustling.
But he didn't just survive. He became more popular than he ever was in that gold and red uniform.
During a game in August 2016, Kaepernick remained on the bench during the national anthem to protest police brutality.
In his defense, he was already comfortable there.
The event dispatched US Army Green Beret and former Seattle Seahawks player Nate Boyer to talk about the stunt with Kaepernick. While Boyer admitted he didn't want anyone to sit or kneel during the anthem, the Special Forces operator said kneeling with the team would be preferable to sitting on the bench.
Boyer added that he wanted everyone to feel pride during the anthem as he does, but if not, he wants to find common ground with those that disagree.
Kaepernick agreed, and the kneeling movement started. Kaepernick probably didn't need much convincing anyway since it finally allowed him to get off the bench.
The protest led to Kaepernick's famous Nike ad, encouraging people to "Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything." in 2018.
Easy for someone to say whose career is on the chopping block.
The Hustle
Now that we know how Kaepernick started his race hustling crusade let's look at his propaganda.
Kaepernick's NFL video draws comparisons between slavery in the United States and the Scouting Combine.
Yes, that Combine, the football event where players run, jump, and throw balls to make the team.
The NFL Scouting Combine first started in the early 1980s, as they formally named it. The private event gives scouts and coaches an open forum to see prospects in action. They also measure arms spans and hand size to assess their assigned roles on the field.
For example, someone with larger hands might better catch the ball, and a heavier player might be best for the defensive line, et cetera.
Makes sense.
While the Combine draws national attention from fans today, it was a private competition for NFL staff before 2003.
With the new NFL Network launch, the Combine provided more content for fans and a new avenue of inspiration for young people.
American kids find motivation while watching games in person and on TV, but seeing the Combine lets them see the inner workings of the selection process.
Anyone playing high school football knows the astronomical chances of any player going pro.
They know of the extreme physical capabilities they must display and how to deflect obstacles such as keeping an academic record in good standing and staying out of trouble.
Many would kill for a shot in the big leagues.
And I don't think they would see it as a ticket into slavery.
Holes in This Race Hustling Argument
Maybe we should break down some of the details in Kaepernick's video to ensure we aren't missing the point.
First, Kaepernick overdramatically tells us about a "power dynamic" on the field.
And yes, you are correct. A power dynamic is simply a relationship of power between people or groups.
Kaepernick is right as well. There is a power dynamic at play. But it's not a secret between players and coaches. The NFL is an employer, and Combine participants are potential employees.
But there's also a power dynamic between their IT department techs and a Chief Information Officer. Or between a student and teacher.
It's everywhere.
The concept of a power dynamic certainly isn't exclusive to slavery or even negativity, for that matter.
It's just part of human nature.
Kaepernick also tells us how players are "poked" and examined.
Again, this is true. But don't power companies ensure electricians can climb poles?
Don't fire departments ensure firefighters can carry people?
When I joined the Army, they examined me and everyone else.
Only I'm not sure how seriously the NFL takes butt gazing.
Nevermind.
Anyway, I'm not a football expert, but the concept of checking potential players in action before hiring them seems like a simple and expected affair.
To suggest verifying skills pre-hire is comparable to American slavery is asinine.
Cherry Picking
Next in the video, a scene depicts Combine participants walking off the field and stepping back in time to a slave auction where their football uniforms turn into 1800's slave attire.
Then the white men similarly examine and measure the players as we see at the Combine.
But the NFL doesn't only employ blacks. So, where are the white players?
Tom? Aaron? I guess we pretend you don't exist.
For now.
The only white people in Kaepernick's video are the men working the auction.
That's part of the race hustle. Hustlers draw similarities when convenient and ignore facts that contradict the message.
The same thing happens with mainstream media.
Then we have to consider the salary differences between slaves and NFL players. Take a look at any NFL team or any pro athlete, and you'll see many of them are multi-millionaires.
What did the average salary look like for black slaves?
Did they get a merchandise deal? Maybe a sponsorship?
Here's an image of an actual slave auction.
The mother with the child depicted is likely praying she doesn't become separated from her child.
And the man leaning against the steps isn't deciding between a Bears or Packers contract.
I'm starting to think we're in some Truman Show-type simulation where the people in charge test how long we'll go along with this nonsense.
Proving the American Dream
But while people get on him about race hustling, Kaepernick doesn't realize that he is making a case for the American Dream.
All of this money and fame happened because of his skills and the opportunity the US provides.
Does he really think this would fly anywhere?
Of course, the American Dream may be more accessible for some than others. Again, racism, sexism, and every other "ism" exists as it always will, in some form or another.
But Kaepernick would have you believe that America is systematically racist, and you can't succeed if you're a minority.
And when his career took a downturn, he found another avenue to make money. He even kept his Nike deal.
It's not ethical, but he found a way to thrive by race hustling. He provides a service, and he's compensated for it.
Still, Kaepernick's message is not only wrong but reckless.
Because he's filling the minds of our youths up with poisonous ideas much in the same way gang and cult recruiters do.
Impressionable people listen when we have "trusted" celebrities on "trusted" networks pushing a message.
And we wonder why racism continues.
Real Racism
Now, if Kaepernick compared slaves to, say, black convicts working in a chain gang in the 1990s, that would be more accurate.
Thanks to the 1994 crime bill supported by Joe Biden, we have an excessive number of blacks in prison for crack cocaine convictions.
Meanwhile, cocaine users, typically white, received milder sentences.
Crack users got locked up for five years for five grams of crack. On the other hand, cocaine users would need at least 500 grams of cocaine to receive the same sentence.
Of course, there are white crack users and black cocaine users, but generally speaking, the laws caused a racial disparity.
Isn't that crazy?
Yet Biden somehow sold himself as an advocate for unity.
Thanks to the 1994 crime bill, more black people in prison meant more black kids were growing up having never met their parents. Those kids lose direction and fall victim to gang violence and prison.
But we can't talk about that. Yet if Trump signed off on the 1994 crime bill, we wouldn't hear the end of it.
Instead, we develop clever videos that are entirely false and show them around the internet for impressionable young people to see and give them a broken sense of self and race in general.
But here's the real problem. All this woke racism muddies the water for actual racism.
These race hustlers are crying wolf.
But hey, as long as Kaepernick gets his check, he's good. He doesn't really care about fighting discrimination or criminal justice reforms.
He's just using it as a springboard to keep the money and fame he found in the NFL.
But agree with him or not, he made the American Dream work for himself.
And in order for him to get paid, he needs you to believe the American Dream is a myth.