In a fascinating scene in the 49ers’ locker room Sunday afternoon, a prominent NFL quarterback spoke with reporters for 18 minutes and discussed gun violence instead of game plans, racism instead of reading a defense. Two days after he sparked a national conversation by declining to stand for the national anthem before a preseason game, Colin Kaepernick explained his controversial stand. Kaepernick has declined to stand during the national anthem during each of the 49ers’ preseason games, and he said he will continue to do so. Kaepernick has said he doesn’t want “show pride” in a country that oppresses “people of color,” citing a spate of shootings of black people by white police officers. When there’s significant change and I feel like that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent, this country is representing people the way that it’s supposed to, I’ll stand. On Saturday, the day after his decision created national headlines, no NFL player sat during the national anthem during six preseason games. Before he met with reporters, Kaepernick was among the players who spoke Sunday morning during a team meeting that addressed the firestorm his decision had created and the potential locker-room fallout. Wide receiver Torrey Smith echoed many of his teammates when he said he doesn’t necessarily agree with the way in which Kaepernick is bringing attention to issues such as racial inequality. “Oftentimes people want athletes to take a stand,” Smith said. [...] after Kap stated his case today and seeing where he’s coming from, I do stand with Kap when he says enough is enough against crime, violence, discrimination and racism. Kaepernick’s gesture, of course, is symbolic, but he said he has plans in the works to become involved in activist causes. “I do think that the talk has been more about me, more about I know a lot of people’s initial reactions thought it was bashing the military, which it wasn’t,” Kaepernick said. Eric Branch is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.
Comment on Colin Kaepernick: ‘This stand wasn’t for me’
By Eric Branch, San Francisco Chronicle: Sports
Sun, 08/28/2016 - 5:53pm
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