Did Colin Kaepernick hurt his protest message by not voting?

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   Stevennix2001posted 8 years ago

   According to ESPN, Colin Kaepernick said he didn't vote because he felt either candidate wouldn't help this country, as he felt both were corrupt.  For those of you who don't know, Colin started a protest earlier this year by sitting down during the National Anthem because he refused to salute a flag for a country that turns a blind eye towards racism and oppression.  Of course, over time, he began kneeling during the anthem instead of sitting, and it's caused a huge movement throughout the US.  In fact, even a few military soldiers have knelt during the national anthem; citing they were inspired by Colin's bravery and strength of his convictions.   However, when he stated he didn't vote for either Trump or Clinton this year, many sports writers/analysts (including a black sports reporter by the name of Steven A. Smith) said he should shut the f**k up and never speak again about politics if he's not going to vote.  In fact, Steven A. Smith even accused Colin of using his protests as nothing more than an elaborate scheme to get attention upon hearing this news, which is ironic considering he was one of Colin's strongest supporters before election day.  Now, he thinks that Colin is a joke, and that his message wasn't sincere because he didn't vote. 
   
   What do you think?  Did Colin hurt his message by not voting?  Or do you think everyone is being too harsh on him?  Please discuss.

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      lions44posted 8 years agoin reply to this

      While I respect Kaepernick's right to kneel, not voting hurts his cause.  I expected it though.  He has spoken about being oppressed by both the left and right. So he believe his vote doesn't mean much. That's sad.   Everything seems to bother him emotionally which can lead to bad decisions.  You have to be involved to make change.
      
      Unfortunately, many feel protesting is on par with voting or running for office. Sorry, it's not.  You can write your Congressperson too or just tweet at them. Many will respond. I'm sure he could earn an audience with many elected officials, particularly in CA (maybe he has already, I don't know).   He's getting a lot of bad advice or is being influenced by some very misguided people.  You want change, get involved.  To use a bad pun, if you want to be a player, you have to get in the game.  He needs to do more.   Many other NFL players are doing something. Kaep needs to join them.

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