By
Sampson Iroabuchi Onwuka
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The social
dissent over Kaepernick’s ‘race’ commentary is one the highlights of 2016. The
dissent mirrors the extent that any star athlete can divide the opinions of the
public – especially during presidential election years. The reflection of 2016
is not entirely about the election and the NFL; it is to a large extent about
the Kaepernick and his commentary. The NFL may not pretend that much was not
expected of their leadership during the off field race commentaries but their
silence and minimum participation may explain the extent of their powers. It widens the landscape that NFL may need
official power brokers to readapt some basic conflict between the players and
the public to statuesque. When and if becomes necessary to intervene during
dissent it will be deflate the bubble than the attempts at damages. It could be
asked if the dissent was a natural reaction to a person of interest hitting a
hammer at the head, or that the public lack due patient for men perhaps
struggling with married life. It is a poor commentary to scar the media that perhaps
if the athlete had been married – perhaps with children it could have clawed
the deciding dispatch from some of the dissenters. There are those who agree
with Karpernick and there are others who disagree, to the extent that the two
dissent group chart their actions differently - make the clearer picture that
the statement hitting the ‘hammer at the head’ is poor show and perhaps a less
redeeming summary of the commentary by Colin Karpernick to the more critical
possibility that the penetration was not deep enough. Deeper into American
cultural civilization is a country rooted in defense of the less privileged and
less fortunate, it’s a country transformed over the centuries through the
challenges of civil and social conflicts.
The focus is
Kaepernick – at least the evolution of his person and his transformations
through the years with the 49ers. The 49ers and their star quarterback are
known to occasionally have their say on NFL matters and no strangers to trash
talk between them and in between NFL teams. But this year there is something
slightly different, a commentary on ‘systematic racism’ during a non-political
year would have meant nothing or something, but in 2016 the reasons are
everywhere that hints of political commentary can charge the nation. Given the
speed of the dissent in nearly everywhere, especially at the NFL, it would seem
from a rear-view that we may not have taken Karpernick seriously and that the
maturity of Kaepernick in persons, in ideas and at a NFL was not apparent until
recently. The slow observation of his psychological leaning over the years seem
not to jive until recently, perhaps due to the mocking years of the failures to
land a super bowl ring but also due to the sharp disconnect between sports and
politics. The lines are everywhere and the audience disagrees with the extent
of the political dogma and the broach to public competition and sports. We may
argue that the statement by Karpernick is hardly political, that it may or may not
have been arrived at through other searching reasons than the smear observation
of what seem available to him.
Politics
apart, sports and champion aside, we may now wonder perhaps if the influence on
all of us radiated differently, that it now seem fitting to castigate him
following what seem a passing commentary. Perhaps he’s not loved that well, or
his kind and generous psychology is not received as a commitment to adult
living. Perhaps he is worthy of his fair share of the castigation that comes
with scanting criticism of American social landscape and by that he is not
sorry that the statement of ‘systematic racism’ is not a lamentation or true by
the yardstick known to all and asunder. In this dissent – which is not perhaps
the last from NFL or even from a Colin Karpernick, we are faced with two
construct, one, an – off-the -field construct and the other - his on-the-field
construct. We must here choose to tend our post along the opposing construct
and the dissent. We may indicate for the general public that enough exist to
clarify that ‘race’ discourses – even the indigent kind – is a valued judgment
destined for ashes and in trying circumstances of the public concerns – race
commentary is ‘oft with spear’, a lightning rod not fitting a prince. It is also his prerogative which supersede
every other concern especially on-the-field ability.
A patina
highlighting his off- field the commentary and his talent show during on the
field games, gives a sense of an enduring presence, a charisma of unyielding
persona. But there are others. Had we failed recognize the influence of the
star athlete, it would not have mattered that he was vilified or so it seems
but since Colin Kaepernick is still grasping his straw with leadership, there are elements of surprise. On a more
general note, Colin may or may not have noticed that a generation of NFL
quarterback have taken their leave – that Kaepernick and company lead the NFL.
Colin may or may not have also noticed that there are few deciding quarterbacks
out there and if there is a pecking order he is among the very elite. He is for
other reason held closer to the light than every NFL player. Once every other
time the onus to perform falls of these pillars and guiding lights of sports
cartel and with it the higher calling.
On the hand
it could be argued that Karpernick is in reality a leader of a team in his own
right, that in San Francisco if not in the country - he is a hero to poor white
folks who are angst beseech about their future. He is also to rich others who
include all Americans who are also in sports. If this argument is acceptable,
we are safe to assert that Kaepernick left out in his commentary the fact that
Americans are still tender in their emotion about the country that for instance
the U.S Police did not know it all. The summary of the paragraph is that the
reaction from the media and the public did not reflect the ‘race’ commentary.
The churn of smiles over the issue that divided the country could not erase any
doubts beneath the country’s struggle for opulence, and there are more demanding
issues of U.S ability to meet the crying demands for justice and for protection
in an age of information technology and personal importance. There are men
still left and he end the year as it began with its expectation for better
things. The rest is thrash,
We imagine
that a star athlete on the other hand would tickle a kind of interest in the
public. We can also draw from the incident the extent to which his the
off-field commentary or lifestyle of a major NFL player such as Colin Kapernick
would interfere with his performance on-the-field. A comparative look at some
of the players at the NFL whose reactionary tendencies to public dissent may
throw light on why the failure of Karpernick to mount defense raise the issues
of doubts over his personal ability to defend his position. It is not the
legality of his position but his legibility for what he is confronted with. For
instance Jerry Rice would rephrase all the questions from the press may have
reacted differently and a Tom Brady may organize his own media press release,
may not be enough but state his canons will closely to the obstacle.
In short,
there are lingering and undiminished surprises that accompany Kaepernick 2016
fall- out with the public, one of which is the lasting reasons for his silence
during the lash from the media. We may not pretend that such silence or
silencing leave with undigested facts about the whole episode. We would have
expected the fast talking, thrash talking machine and one of the sexiest men in
NFL called Colin Kaepernick to highlight his view to our media house. It didn’t
quite happen. The circus of radioactive commentaries proved serious for his
health and the silence of minorities made it look ridiculous. Let us emphasize
that American has ‘systematic racism’ but the point shy from the more common fact
that America was designed from its ancient beginning to tackle and end the
problems of racism, gender, class, religious persecution, which are products of
human ineluctability.
There are
reason to doubt the ‘systematic racism’ given the ominous gaps between
self-preservation which discriminates and self-preservation through public
policy. It is up to the older part of Colin to call on American history through
the last 200 years at least, to mention that the there are times the country
lost tract of its raison d’eter and periods when it was tried for many reasons,
that there are reasons why it remains faithful to its statuesque. If
off-the-field Karpernick proves a polarizing figure because he was hardly taken
seriously as a title contender, it would not have mattered since there are
issues of championship on-the-field which require his diligence. For a man who
has not won any major championship with the 49ers, there is something to prove
to himself and to San Francisco. If we maintain that there reasons to doubt that
his belt will buckle as quarterback of a major team – then we may yet accept
that his polarizing image is concomitant with the acceptance that a Colin is no
longer an affair, that a transformation was complete in 2016 and not enough.
Since at
least he holds the ace for a team that is yet to prove their point it will be interesting
to see how long he last as a favorite of the 49ers. On-the-field the ball will
not founder and off the field, he is no longer his past. He should not however
think no body is listening but we interested in Colin. If he is off-the-real
transformed, he should look to the year 2016 at the beginning of his influence,
he should try in all reason to escape little distractions. Karpernick must
destroy his idea of Colin not because he is adjudged at fault, that Karpernick
is not student but the American.
