Deviance By Colin Kaepernick

Synthesis essay of Dr. King In his letter, “Letters from Birmingham Jail”, Activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. defends the wise and timely decision of a peaceful protest against racism and police brutality. King makes three major points in his essay. The “Wise and Timely” decision of a peaceful protest as well as white moderates and how they are contributing to the racism. King mentions police brutality which is being protested to this day.

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is standing up for people who he feels are being mistreated or are unable to correct the wrongs being done to them. When he chose to sit, (or kneel) for the National Anthem, he was doing so knowing it would bring himself and his message to the country. His overall goal is to stop police brutality and bring about a better tomorrow. I wholeheartedly agree with Kaepernick idea and goal. Many people hear about police brutality and about suspects being killed while trying to flee.

“It is the Soldier, not the minister, who has given us freedom of religion. It is the Soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press. It is the Soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech. It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to protest. It is the Soldier, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.

The author adds another example is about his protest reason “I’m seeing things happen to people that don’t have a voice. People that don’t have a platform to talk and have their voices heard and effect change. I’m in a position where I can do that, and I’m going to do that for people that can’t” (Loggins 3). In this parts the author shows the readers Kaepernick’s loyalty, and he never cares about the money. He just wants people to know what he is doing now.

The current debate over kneeling or sitting in protest during the National anthem ignited by Colin Kaepernick in 2016 has escalated to become a nationally divisive issue. Colin Kaepernick, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers refuse to stand during “the Star Spangled Banner” Aug. 2016, to protest against racial injustice and police brutality in the United States. These athletics that chose not to stand for the national anthem because there was a message they wanted to send. Needless to say, an individual has a right to believe as they so choose. Kaepernick along with many others feel that not standing for the national anthem is a peaceful way to protest and release their feelings.

As a quarterback in the NFL, Colin Kaepernick has thousands of eyes on him during games. He took an opportunity to “stand up” for what he believed in by taking a knee during the national anthem. Although many people agree with what he was trying to stand up for with the Black Lives Matter cause, many also believe he did it in the wrong fashion. The reason many people believe Kaepernick was in the wrong when he knelt for the national anthem is because these people feel he is disrespecting not only the United States, but also the troops that have fought to keep our great nation free. Although there are many people that disagree with his actions, there are also a vast amount of people that support him, and have even joined in with his protest.

For major social issues like racism and homelessness they are very hard to solve. Many times they are just being managed and not solved. Sometimes it’s easier to just manage an issue and keep pushing it away for a later time, until it starts being a big problem and costing society a lot of money. Like racism they try to manage it by having separate but equal, but it is still racist. Martin Luther King Jr fought for civil rights for many year, he used peaceful protest for his cause.

“Black Lives Matter is an ideological and political in a world Black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for our demise” (). Why are activist groups consider a deviance act? To define deviance is “any behavior or physical appearance that is socially challenged and condemned because it departs from the norms and expectations of a group” (McCaghey,2008,5). Meaning that just by acting out as a group or a just one person who is displaying deviant behavior. From another perspective, Black Lives Matter could be considered as a Domestic/Foreign terrorism.

Deviance is defined as "any violation of norms, whether the infraction is as minor as driving over the speed limit, as serious as murder, or as humorous as Chagnon 's encounter with the Yanomamo" (Henslin 194). One statement that stuck out to me was sociologist Howard S. Becker 's definition of deviance: "It is not the act itself, but the reactions to the act, that make something deviant" (Henslin 194). One reaction that acts as a punishment for a deviant or minor criminal is the criminal justice system. On page 211 in our book, it is stated that "the working class and those below them pose a special threat to the power elite" (Henslin). As a result of this threat, the law and punishment comes down harder on the lower class than it does on the upper class.

When you are kneeling you’re acting in a nonverbal way and aren’t harming others, it is considered non-threatening and can be considered instead of disrespectful as respectful. Kaepernick once said “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color” (Snopes), indicates that he indeed has a reason for his kneeling and has the right to feel the way he does. He begins to receive shaming because of this but others came to his defense and pointed out how in the national anthem slavery is celebrated. In the third stanza of the national anthem, “No refuge could save the hireling and slave, from the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave- “this phrase referred to the black slaves that played a part in the War of 1812 to fight with the

Steven Sternberg Mrs. Burns English 1 CP 1 March, 2018 The Flag Protest “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color” (Kaepernick, Colin). The flag protest has been a protest existing for a long time but, recently sparked lots of controversy. Although kneeling during the national anthem may seem disrespectful are often seen as a disrespect to the flag and troops, a inefficient way to promote a cause, and anger many people in shows division in the country, it can show that the ideals of freedom is justified, it generates conversation and awareness about topic, and is a legal form of peaceful protest.

Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback of the San-Francisco 49ers, chose not to stand for the National Anthem at a recent National Football League game. Instead, he decided to express his unhappiness with the way African Americans are being treated by police, by kneeling to the ground. This was his form of protest and attempt to convey his message about how he felt. Kaepernick does have the right to not stand for the National Anthem, however, it is disrespectful. People fight for our freedom, so why disrespect those men and women and an NFL game was not the right time or place to hold his protest.

Even though not everyone agrees with what he is trying to do he still stands his ground and tells his views to

During the first three preseason games of the 2016 NFL season, Colin Kaepernick formerly quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers sat through the national anthem in protest of police brutality towards African American individuals. When asked about it, Kaepernick said, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of colour.” News outlets immediately attacked

According to Hunt and Colandar (2011), a word deviant refers to when an individual’s actions contradict with society’s norms. For instance, majority peoples followed norms because society expect individual to behave in morally tolerate with each other. Those failing to conform the norms noted as deviant. In a social context, the task of the society is to blind the action of the social community together. Once failing to act them to the society’s reaction that seem as deviant.