Even as the national media initially tried its best to ignore 49ers player Colin Kaepernick refusing to stand for the National Anthem during a Friday game last week, fans had other ideas on how to react. Many fans took to social media to burn their Kaepernick jerseys, while others suggested a few things the petulant player could do with himself.
After Friday’s game, the media, especially the sports media, tired to ignore Kaepernick’s actions during the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Immediately after the game, no questions were asked of him and he offered no explanation for why he refused to stand for the anthem.
But the team likely already saw a storm brewing. Befitting their hometown of San Francisco, the 49ers quickly put out a statement fully supporting Kaepernick’s decision not to stand for the anthem. And not long after that, Kaepernick himself issued a statement saying he sees no reason to stand for the anthem because the U.S. is an evil nation filled with racists. All this despite the fact that the biracial player was adopted and raised by a white family, has become a millionaire, and has achieved easy fame.
As a follow-up, the player, whose career is starting to fade, also tweeted a message saying that the U.S. and the Confederacy are exactly alike. But he quickly deleted the tweet. That post, though, would be typical of the radical posts found on his Twitter account. A look at Kaepernick’s Twitter account reveals a high number of anti-American tweets and quite a bit of race baiting.
Eventually, after initially ignoring it, much of the sports media came out with glowing applause for Kaepernick’s “brave” stance against the U.S.A.
But as the hours ticked away, the fans were less of a mind to appreciate Kaepernick’s dissing of the United States of America.
One fan burned his Kaepernick jersey to the tune of the National Anthem.
Louisiana resident Shane White, who had purchased a Kaepernick jersey, was infuriated when the player called the country “racist.” He took to his Facebook page to express his own feelings about what the player did.
In the past, other fans have also posted the burning of Kaepernick jerseys on social media.
Still others reacted in different ways on Twitter and Facebook. As reported at The Daily Mail, one fan suggested that if Kaepernick hates the U.S. so much, maybe he should move to Canada. Many others echoed that sentiment and offered a myriad number of things Kaepernick could do with himself.
But the best reply may have been posted to Twitter by Nick Short who posted a photo that shames Kaepernick’s petty actions to no end.
The Marine in that photo is Sgt. Zachary Stinson of Pennsylvania, who lost both of his legs above the knee in an IED attack in Afghanistan in 2010. Sgt. Stinson cannot stand for the National Anthem but, as seen in the photo, clearly found a way to come to attention out of respect for the country. While Kaepernick was playing a game for a living and making millions, Sgt. Stinson was at Walter Reed Army Medical Center painfully trying to recover from his grievous wounds suffered in service to our country.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.