Simon Cox Blog: There’s No Dishonor in Kneeling: A Response on Colin Kaepernick

Wednesday 27 September 2017

There’s No Dishonor in Kneeling: A Response on Colin Kaepernick

Charlie Dates responds to Ed Stetzer's article on Kaepernick’s protest

Let me rush to acknowledge that the growing racial tensions in America need not create further racial division in the Church of Jesus Christ. I submit these words to you not to intensify an already hostile culture, but to say that the Church must not be silent while bigotry holds the mic in America.

Ed made it clear that he thinks Colin Kaepernick’s approach is unhelpful. I admire, love, and appreciate Ed. He is a delightful and genuine Christian man. And still, I respectfully disagree with Ed.

Kaepernick and the others have done the right thing.

By quickly disagreeing with Kaep’s method, we divert attention away from the issue itself and magnify the protest. Kaep’s method is what gives voice to the message. Let’s not dismiss the protest because some don’t agree with it, but rather let us ask the pertinent question, “What would make pro athletes do this?”

If you are ambivalent or offended about their kneeling, here is what you might be missing.

It’s not about patriotism.

By kneeling, these guys are not dishonoring the flag or the anthem. They are raising the moral argument that our nation has failed the ideals of the flag and the anthem. They are calling both the nation and its leadership to fulfill the great ethics of the anthem by recognizing that its lyrics and promises remain unfulfilled for many black Americans. This is to be the land of the free. That freedom is not equally distributed in policing, economics, education, and housing to black people in America.

Black Americans possess a distinct relationship with the Declaration of Independence. You won’t find many African American families reading it on the 4th of July. In fact, we were not set free on the 4th of July. ...