Kaepernick is Wrong and Racism No Longer Exists
Most people don't care, but Colin Kaepernick has been protesting, and it's creating a pretty big controversy. He said, "The message is that we have a lot of issues in this country that we need to deal with. We have a lot of people that are oppressed. We have a lot of people that aren't treated equally, that aren't given equal opportunities. Police brutality is a huge thing that needs to be addressed." He has also said that he refuses to stand in support of the flag of a country that "oppresses black people."
Kaepernick is not wrong for protesting. All Americans have the right to free speech. What IS wrong is the content of his protest. His grievances are unjustified. His opinion is incorrect, if not ignorant.
Are the police sometimes "brutal?" Yes. We are all in agreement about that. And we all agree that it is wrong, including those in law enforcement. But considering the type of work they do, and considering the reality that police officers are fallible human beings, police brutality will always be a challenge, and not just in the USA, but in every police force around the world. As well, police brutality is not condoned in our country. In cases where an officer's behavior is in question, there is an investigation, and if found guilty, the officer is punished accordingly.
But this is the source of the controversy: Kaepernick and Black Lives Matter are accusing the police of being brutal to black people more than other races, and that the police are being brutal to black people because of their race. Not only has this never been proven, but the facts show the opposite to be true. As Bryan Fischer put it, Kaepernick is "apparently unaware that cops are 18.5 times more likely to be shot by a black man than an unarmed black man is to be shot by a cop. He is apparently unaware that cops are actually much more hesitant to pull the trigger when the suspect is black than when he is white." For even more evidence that the police aren't racist against blacks see my post "Are The Police Racist?" The reason Kaepernick and Black Lives Matter are getting so much attention is because they continue to promote an idea that is both fallacious and dangerous.
But there is a deeper issue driving this controversy. It is the assertion that racism against black people is still a huge problem in our country. Some believe that police brutality against blacks is only one example of racism in America, and they are using it to highlight the bigger problem -- oppression against black people in America. But this assertion is also fallacious.
The reality is that racism against black people is almost entirely non-existent. How can I make that claim? Today in the United States racism is not standing in the way of black people accomplishing their dreams and fulfilling their potential. Racism will always exist, along with all forms of sin, in every country around the world. But racism is only a real problem if it is actually holding people back from their goals and dreams. And that's not happening in our country. Blacks have the same opportunities, the same rights, the same freedoms, and the same protections as whites under the law. Blacks in America are rising to the top of the ladder in every field -- politics, sports, entertainment, education, science, the military, the medical field, literature, etc. No black person in America can truthfully blame their lack of success on racism. Are black people sometimes mistreated because of the color of their skin? Yes. So are white people. Everybody experiences mistreatment for all kinds of reasons, but only a fool uses that as an excuse for failure, irresponsibility, and immorality.
Kaepernick has the right to protest. But he's got it all wrong. Black people aren't being oppressed in America. This is the country that abolished slavery, Jim Crow, and racial segregation. It's the country that elected a black man to be the president not once, but twice. It's the country where a black person has the freedom and opportunity to "write the script of his own life." And you would think this would all be obvious to a black man who was adopted and raised by white parents, was given a top-notch education, is now earning millions of dollars for being mediocre at a sport that he loves, and who has the constitutionally protected freedom to say whatever he wants, no matter how ridiculous.
Kaepernick is not wrong for protesting. All Americans have the right to free speech. What IS wrong is the content of his protest. His grievances are unjustified. His opinion is incorrect, if not ignorant.
Are the police sometimes "brutal?" Yes. We are all in agreement about that. And we all agree that it is wrong, including those in law enforcement. But considering the type of work they do, and considering the reality that police officers are fallible human beings, police brutality will always be a challenge, and not just in the USA, but in every police force around the world. As well, police brutality is not condoned in our country. In cases where an officer's behavior is in question, there is an investigation, and if found guilty, the officer is punished accordingly.
But this is the source of the controversy: Kaepernick and Black Lives Matter are accusing the police of being brutal to black people more than other races, and that the police are being brutal to black people because of their race. Not only has this never been proven, but the facts show the opposite to be true. As Bryan Fischer put it, Kaepernick is "apparently unaware that cops are 18.5 times more likely to be shot by a black man than an unarmed black man is to be shot by a cop. He is apparently unaware that cops are actually much more hesitant to pull the trigger when the suspect is black than when he is white." For even more evidence that the police aren't racist against blacks see my post "Are The Police Racist?" The reason Kaepernick and Black Lives Matter are getting so much attention is because they continue to promote an idea that is both fallacious and dangerous.
But there is a deeper issue driving this controversy. It is the assertion that racism against black people is still a huge problem in our country. Some believe that police brutality against blacks is only one example of racism in America, and they are using it to highlight the bigger problem -- oppression against black people in America. But this assertion is also fallacious.
The reality is that racism against black people is almost entirely non-existent. How can I make that claim? Today in the United States racism is not standing in the way of black people accomplishing their dreams and fulfilling their potential. Racism will always exist, along with all forms of sin, in every country around the world. But racism is only a real problem if it is actually holding people back from their goals and dreams. And that's not happening in our country. Blacks have the same opportunities, the same rights, the same freedoms, and the same protections as whites under the law. Blacks in America are rising to the top of the ladder in every field -- politics, sports, entertainment, education, science, the military, the medical field, literature, etc. No black person in America can truthfully blame their lack of success on racism. Are black people sometimes mistreated because of the color of their skin? Yes. So are white people. Everybody experiences mistreatment for all kinds of reasons, but only a fool uses that as an excuse for failure, irresponsibility, and immorality.
Kaepernick has the right to protest. But he's got it all wrong. Black people aren't being oppressed in America. This is the country that abolished slavery, Jim Crow, and racial segregation. It's the country that elected a black man to be the president not once, but twice. It's the country where a black person has the freedom and opportunity to "write the script of his own life." And you would think this would all be obvious to a black man who was adopted and raised by white parents, was given a top-notch education, is now earning millions of dollars for being mediocre at a sport that he loves, and who has the constitutionally protected freedom to say whatever he wants, no matter how ridiculous.
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