Activists and fans are coming forward to defend Colin Kaepernick following Dez Bryant’s recent remarks. The Dallas Cowboys wide receiver appeared on the I Am Athlete podcast where, among the discussion, Bryant called out Kaepernick for not making good on his activism. Kaepernick was blackballed from the NFL following his “Take a Knee” campaign, and while the controversy helped raise awareness about injustice, Bryant was critical that Kaepernick could have done more.
“I respect Colin Kaepernick, but it’s one thing that I don’t respect,” said Bryant. “And I said when I get the opportunity to get on the stage and say it, I would say it.”
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“Love him to death, so it ain’t no hate or nothin’ like that, but brother, you had the biggest opportunity in the world to create jobs, build jobs, give jobs to people,” he continued. “The people that you were talking about, the people that you, so-called, standing up for. People that stood beside you, the people who lost they jobs because of you. Where you at? I ain’t heard from you.”
“He brought the awareness and that’s why I respect him.” Someone asked what the call to action was. “There wasn’t one. There was no call to action.” The public reacted with mixed responses, but Jemele Hill jumped in to set Bryant straight.
“With all due respect @DezBryant, this is uninformed. Colin Kaepernick has created a publishing company, a SPAC that’s raising $300M for social justice initiatives, a production company, etc. On top of founding the Know Your Rights Camp. I don’t get the point of dragging his name.”
Check it out below.