Being a policeman
is not an easy job, and the vast majority of our law enforcement officials are
conscientious while carrying out their duties – but not all of them are.
In 2017, police
offices in America killed 1129 people. (In the first seven months of 2017 there were eight shootings by police in England and
Wales, of which five have been fatal.)
More people died from police violence in 2017 than the total
number of U.S. soldiers killed in action around the globe
(21). More people died at the hands of police in 2017 than the number of black
people who were lynched in the worst year of Jim Crow (161 in 1892). Cops killed more Americans in 2017 than terrorists did (four). They killed more citizens than airplanes (13 deaths worldwide), mass shooters (428 deaths) and Chicago’s “top gang thugs” (675 Chicago homicides).
Yet only 12 officers were charged with a crime related to a
shooting death.
Here are some
facts that are sure to raise your eyebrows:
- Of the 534
killer cops Mapping Police Violence was able to identify, 43 had shot or
killed someone before. Twelve had previously shot or killed multiple
people.
- Most of the people killed (718) were suspects in
nonviolent offenses, were stopped for traffic violations or had
committed no crime at all.
- 13 percent of
people killed by cops were unarmed.
- Most of the unarmed victims were
people of color.
Of the 147 unarmed people killed by police, 48 were black and 34 were
Hispanic.
- Black people
accounted for 27 percent of the people killed by law enforcement officers.
Of the unarmed victims
of police violence, blacks made up 37 percent, almost three times their
percentage of the U.S. population (13 percent).
- Of the people
who were unarmed and not attacking, but were still killed by
cops, 35 percent were black.
- 95 people were
killed when police shot at a moving vehicle, a practice that many say
should be banned.
- 170 of the
people killed were armed with a knife. In 117 of those incidents, police
shot the person before trying any other method to disarm the person.
- 20 percent of
the people who had a gun when they were killed were not threatening
anyone.
- Law enforcement training spends
seven times more hours training officers on the use of firearms than on
how to de-escalate situations.
Colin Kaepernick
was named the offensive player of the year twice during his college football
career at the University of Nebraska. After graduation, he was selected by the
San Francisco 49ers in the 2nd round of the NFL draft. He started as
backup quarterback to Alex Smith, but became the starting quarterback the
following year when Smith suffered a concussion. That same year, he led the
49ers to their first Super Bowl appearance since 1994.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Kaepernick
During the 2016
season, he had a passer rating of 90.7, a very respectable number, and one of
the lowest interception rates of the 29 “first string” quarterbacks. His
guaranteed salary for the 2016 season was $11.9 million.
At the end of the 2016, he opted out of his contract to become
a free agent, which occurred after he started kneeling during the national
anthem to protest racial injustice in the United States. In addition, Kaepernick pledged to donate one
million dollars to "organizations working in oppressed communities."
In 2017, Kaepernick was named GQ magazine's
"Citizen of the Year" for his efforts. He was also nominated to be Time Magazine’s
Person of the Year, a fact that likely infuriated Donald Trump, who railed
against NFL players who followed Kaepernick’s example during the 2017 season.
http://time.com/5045719/time-person-of-the-year-2017-shortlist/
Trump wasted over $250,000 in taxpayer money by directing Mike Pence to walk out of an Indianapolis Colts game during the playing of the national anthem because some of the players knelt down.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/mike-pence-nfl-protest-colts-cost-plane-what-happened-trump-knee-walk-out-a7991336.html
Ironically, Trump's attitude, instead of intimidating players, has actually strengthened their resolve:
Right in the middle of WWII, when patriotic fever was at its peak, the Supreme Court (in 1943) ruled it was unconstitutional for anyone to be forced to salute the flag or stand for the national anthem. Any attempts to do so are a violation of the 1st amendment of the Constitution.
http://time.com/5045719/time-person-of-the-year-2017-shortlist/
Trump wasted over $250,000 in taxpayer money by directing Mike Pence to walk out of an Indianapolis Colts game during the playing of the national anthem because some of the players knelt down.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/mike-pence-nfl-protest-colts-cost-plane-what-happened-trump-knee-walk-out-a7991336.html
Ironically, Trump's attitude, instead of intimidating players, has actually strengthened their resolve:
Right in the middle of WWII, when patriotic fever was at its peak, the Supreme Court (in 1943) ruled it was unconstitutional for anyone to be forced to salute the flag or stand for the national anthem. Any attempts to do so are a violation of the 1st amendment of the Constitution.
Since becoming a
free agent, Kaepernick has received no offers from any NFL team. Some of those
teams have legitimate reasons for not hiring him (likely due to the fact that
they already have good quarterbacks) - but a lot of them do not. The stories at
the links below makes for interesting reading:
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2017/aug/29/colin-kaepernick-protest-blackball-nfl
https://www.thenation.com/.../the-nfl-chose-to-tank-its-season-rather-than-sign-colin
https://www.thenation.com/.../the-nfl-chose-to-tank-its-season-rather-than-sign-colin
I am of the
opinion that it is more patriotic to fight for the rights of our fellow
citizens (even those who have come here from “shithole” countries) than it is
to stand for our national anthem.
What do YOU think?
(editors note: On April 21, 2018, Colin Kaepernick was named Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience, which is Amnesty International's highest honor. Previous winners include Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai, U2, Alicia Keys, and Ai Weiwei.)
https://flipboard.com/@flipboard/-colin-kaepernick-named-amnesty-internat/f-7bc0da1e2d%2Fcnn.com
In addition, Kaepernick was named GQ's Citizen of the Year in November and in December accepted the 2017 Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award. He has also received the Eason Monroe Courageous Advocate Award from the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California in December.
In addition to all of these awards, Kaepernick was awarded a "Human and Civil Rights award on July 1, 2018 by the National Education Association. in recognition of the former pro-football star’s campaign “to fight racial oppression through education and social justice activism.” Predictably, conservative websites (like Townhall) are recommending that teachers should quite the NEA to protest the award.
https://townhall.com/columnists/carlhorowitz/2018/07/22/teachers-and-coaches-should-quit-nea-in-wake-of-kaepernick-award-n2502495
Townhall is an American politically conservative website and print magazine. Previously published by the Heritage Foundation, it is now owned and operated by Salem Communications. The website features more than 80 columns (both syndicated and exclusive) by a variety of writers and commentators, who often appear as guest commentators on the Fox News Channel
Kaepernick's story has also received international attention. The August 24 issue of Al Jazeera published the story below this morning:
https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/blackballed-american-football-recognisable-exile-180824111511354.htmlhttps://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/30/sports/colin-kaepernick-collusion-case-nfl.html
Kaepernick has also attracted support from prominent political figures. On August 23, 2018, Democratic candidate Beto O'Rourke gave a thoughtful response to a question from the audience about players kneeling during the anthem:
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/democrat-beto-o-rourke-goes-viral-response-nfl-players-kneeling-n903176
For most of his race to replace Ted Cruz as the senator from Texas, O'Rourke has been virtually tied with Cruz in the polls, and there is a very good chance that he well defeat Cruz in November. As of August 23, yesterday, Cruz only had a razor thin 4 point lead over O'Rourke.
Kaepernick filed a grievance against the N.F.L. in October of 2017, accusing the owners of conspiring to not offer him a new contract because of his decision to protest during the playing of the national anthem, which began in August 2016.
On August 30, 2018, an arbitrator hired by the NFL said the lawyers hired by Kaepernick had uncovered enough evidence to allow the case against the league to proceed. If Kaepernick is ultimately successful, he will receive the money he would have received from playing ($11 million a year) PLUS triple damages:
As of Labor Day, 2018, the Kaepernick story continues to roll on :
Nike's latest ad features a picture of Kaepernick that reinforces the value of sacrifice> By now, he has achieved strong support from most plalyers, as well as international acclaim:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/09/athletes-side-kaepernick-nike-ad-viral-180904053548698.html
Since the ad campaign started, Nike's stock has increased in value by $26 billion - and his signature shoe will be released in December 2019.
https://sports.yahoo.com/nikes-value-is-up-262-b-since-colin-kaepernick-endorsement-now-its-close-to-unveiling-his-shoe-150012824.html
(editors note: On April 21, 2018, Colin Kaepernick was named Amnesty International Ambassador of Conscience, which is Amnesty International's highest honor. Previous winners include Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai, U2, Alicia Keys, and Ai Weiwei.)
https://flipboard.com/@flipboard/-colin-kaepernick-named-amnesty-internat/f-7bc0da1e2d%2Fcnn.com
In addition, Kaepernick was named GQ's Citizen of the Year in November and in December accepted the 2017 Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award. He has also received the Eason Monroe Courageous Advocate Award from the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California in December.
In addition to all of these awards, Kaepernick was awarded a "Human and Civil Rights award on July 1, 2018 by the National Education Association. in recognition of the former pro-football star’s campaign “to fight racial oppression through education and social justice activism.” Predictably, conservative websites (like Townhall) are recommending that teachers should quite the NEA to protest the award.
https://townhall.com/columnists/carlhorowitz/2018/07/22/teachers-and-coaches-should-quit-nea-in-wake-of-kaepernick-award-n2502495
Townhall is an American politically conservative website and print magazine. Previously published by the Heritage Foundation, it is now owned and operated by Salem Communications. The website features more than 80 columns (both syndicated and exclusive) by a variety of writers and commentators, who often appear as guest commentators on the Fox News Channel
Kaepernick's story has also received international attention. The August 24 issue of Al Jazeera published the story below this morning:
https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/blackballed-american-football-recognisable-exile-180824111511354.htmlhttps://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/30/sports/colin-kaepernick-collusion-case-nfl.html
Kaepernick has also attracted support from prominent political figures. On August 23, 2018, Democratic candidate Beto O'Rourke gave a thoughtful response to a question from the audience about players kneeling during the anthem:
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/democrat-beto-o-rourke-goes-viral-response-nfl-players-kneeling-n903176
For most of his race to replace Ted Cruz as the senator from Texas, O'Rourke has been virtually tied with Cruz in the polls, and there is a very good chance that he well defeat Cruz in November. As of August 23, yesterday, Cruz only had a razor thin 4 point lead over O'Rourke.
Kaepernick filed a grievance against the N.F.L. in October of 2017, accusing the owners of conspiring to not offer him a new contract because of his decision to protest during the playing of the national anthem, which began in August 2016.
On August 30, 2018, an arbitrator hired by the NFL said the lawyers hired by Kaepernick had uncovered enough evidence to allow the case against the league to proceed. If Kaepernick is ultimately successful, he will receive the money he would have received from playing ($11 million a year) PLUS triple damages:
As of Labor Day, 2018, the Kaepernick story continues to roll on :
Nike's latest ad features a picture of Kaepernick that reinforces the value of sacrifice> By now, he has achieved strong support from most plalyers, as well as international acclaim:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/09/athletes-side-kaepernick-nike-ad-viral-180904053548698.html
Since the ad campaign started, Nike's stock has increased in value by $26 billion - and his signature shoe will be released in December 2019.
https://sports.yahoo.com/nikes-value-is-up-262-b-since-colin-kaepernick-endorsement-now-its-close-to-unveiling-his-shoe-150012824.html
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