Four Years Later, NFL Voices Support for Colin Kaepernick

WASHINGTON, KOMPAS.com – After four years, the NFL admitted it was wrong and now voiced its support for Colin Kaepernick in his fight against racial injustice.

Part of that support extends in encouraging NFL players to take a knee for the cause.

So what happens next?

Thursday marks the NFL’s 101st season when the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs faces the Houston Texans.

The league’s end zones will be inscribed this season with two slogans: “It Takes All Of Us” on one side, “End Racism” on the other.

Read also: D.C. Taskforce Suggests Changes to Monuments with Links to Slavery

As part of its social justice awareness initiatives, the NFL also will allow similar visuals on helmets and caps.

Players will be permitted to wear decals on the back of helmets, or patches on team caps, displaying names or phrases to honor victims of racism and/or police brutality.

“The NFL stands with the Black community, the players, clubs and fans,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said last week.

“Confronting recent systemic racism with tangible and productive steps is absolutely essential. We will not relent in our work.”

After George Floyd’s death at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer ignited nationwide protests over racial injustice and police brutality, Goodell apologized to players for not listening sooner and encouraged them to protest peacefully.

Floyd died after a police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for nearly eight minutes.

His death in May awakened many people, including NFL owners, to the root of the issues that led Kaepernick to kneel during “The Star-Spangled Banner” in 2016.

Kaepernick’s demonstration was misinterpreted as an expression that demeaned the flag and country.

President Donald Trump and many of his supporters continue to criticize players across all sports leagues for keeling during the national anthem.