Nike’s decision to name Colin Kaepernick as the face of its 30th anniversary was a bold move. Nike felt the heat from veterans, racists and those who deny police brutality exists.
And the pot was stirred with the store in South Africa temporarily closing.
People felt so passionately about the ads that they burned Nike apparel on social media.
Despite an early three percent drop in market value, Nike’s online sales have skyrocketed by 31 percent from Sunday through Tuesday of last week, according to ajc.com.
Darren Rovell, an ESPN sports reporter, took a poll on Twitter; over 35,000 people participated. Fifty percent of the participants voted that the Nike ad does not affect their decision, and 29 percent are more likely to buy Nike and 21 percent are less likely to purchase Nike.
Many veterans do not see the kneeling of the national anthem as disrespectful. In fact, Nate Boyer, a veteran, wrote a letter to Colin Kaepernick after he sat down during the National Anthem and suggested Kaepernick kneel instead.
When joining the military, you pledge an oath, it proclaims an intent in the preamble that you will support domestic tranquility and provide liberties. What I see from the defensiveness, is that those liberties are not being provided to everyone equally.
There are others who feel as Kaepernick in this country.
Jackie Robinson, an Army Captain and the first African American to play major league baseball, did convey the same sentiment about the National Anthem as Kaepernick in his 1972 autobiography, writing, “I cannot stand and sing the anthem. I cannot salute the flag; I know that I am a black man in a white world.”
In addition, Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr, posted a photo of her father kneeling and placed a photo of Colin Kaepernick kneeling side-by-side, indicating that not much has changed in America.
However, many people have found it disrespectful to the military to kneel during the National Anthem. I feel Kaepernick’s decision exposed some Americans’ true colors. Names as big as President Donald Trump to Taya Kyle have used their platforms to express their opinions and have attacked Nike and Kaepernick. In my opinion, it’s distasteful to badmouth Kaepernick as it is disrespectful since he is exercising his right to free speech.
According to the Washington Post, African Americans are two-and-a-half times more likely to be shot and killed by police than white people. That statistic is upsetting and what I would call disrespectful.
Considering this controversy, change is much needed in America. You can start by asking yourself: what do you stand for?