Anti-American ranter and San Francisco 49ers player Colin Kaepernick has found more voices of support in the NFL. This week Denver Broncos left tackle Russell Okung came out in support of Kaepernick’s antics.
Okung published an article at The Players’ Tribune where he favorably compared Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for the national anthem to the actions of Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the U.S. Olympians who delivered the black power salute during the playing of “The Star Spangled Banner” at the 1968 Summer Olympics to show support for the militant Black Panther Party.
In his piece, Okung, the son of Nigerian Christian immigrants who fled persecution, said to Kaepernick “know that we see you, man.” He added, “Thank you for reigniting the conversation and the movement for change.”
The lineman also took it upon himself to explain what Colin Kaepernick really meant with his anti-American and anti-cop protests. Okung wants us all to think Kaepernick just tried to “bring awareness to the injustices faced by regular people every day.”
“Colin’s goal,” Okung claimed, “was to use his platform to raise the visibility of issues that cannot and should not fall by the wayside as the media moves on to other news.”
Okung went on to praise Kaepernick for using the NFL, or the “transcendent power of sport,” as a tool for “social change.”
“Colin intended to elevate a conversation that must continue to be an active part of our dialogue in the country for all citizens, regardless of their race, background or personal history,” Okung insisted.
Okung’s family fled war-torn Nigeria for a better life in the U.S. He became a multi-millionaire as a result. Despite these experiences, Okung slams the American dream as a lie, recently saying in an interview, “American cultural optimism is one of the greatest lies ever told.”
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.