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One of this month\u2019s MVPs was, without a doubt, Colin Kaepernick.\u00a0Throughout the year, the Milwaukee native has been simmering in the headlines with\u00a0play-by-play updates regarding\u00a0interest among teams who may have needed him on their week roster with\u00a0Kaepernick continued turning down offers from other teams who would sign him if he would only let go of his belief in racial equality. \u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
His claim of being blacklisted by the collective of NFL team owners\u00a0for the controversy he has caused due to his overt protest against police\u00a0brutality,\u00a0\u00a0took an even sharper turn\u00a0once the country\u2019s disgraced president became involved.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
Well, last week, what seemingly came across as an overnight explosion, Kaepernick got the last laugh. \u00a0In five days the NFL\u2019s motion to dismiss Kaepernick\u2019s claim of\u00a0being \u201cshut out\u201d of the league was denied and Nike announced that at 30 years old, he will be the face of their 30th anniversary \u201cJust Do It\u201d campaign.\u00a0 However, the biggest bang of all was when Nike\u00a0purchased air time on NBC during Thursday night football to\u00a0feature\u00a0a commercial that boldly and unapologetically featured Colin Kaepernick, Afro and all.\u00a0 This bold\u00a0move by Nike can perceived as risky with negative implications for its brand and merchandise sales, especially in the aftermath of the\u00a0comical burning of Nike shoes by buyers with blind eyes to the racial issues that clearly exists within our justice system.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
I wouldn\u2019t look at it expressly from that point view, however. In fact, I would not be\u00a0surprised\u00a0if this is not a\u00a0power\u00a0move by Nike and the NFL to exploit the disputation while at the same time neutralize or silence Kaepernick\u2019s call for justice. Money talks. \u00a0Think about it: People love controversy. They want topics to comment on\u00a0that\u00a0will reinforce\u00a0whatever platform they have established.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
What would be the perfect opportunity to give the people what they want and to maintain viewership, relevancy, and sales?\u00a0 Start by giving\u00a0right-wing American\u2019s public enemy\u00a0number one the top spot with the number one athletic brand.\u00a0Nike not only made Colin Kaepernick the face of a campaign, they took the extra step by\u00a0solidifying\u00a0their\u00a0decision\u00a0to the whole world\u00a0during primetime television.\u00a0Why wouldn\u2019t the NFL\u00a0and\u00a0NBC\u00a0welcome such blatant\u00a0power moves promoting someone who represents militancy in the eyes of the Red Hats? As the saying goes, \u201cIt\u2019s all a numbers game.\u201d\u00a0As long as he does not step foot on the field and continue to embed\u00a0his ideas upon his teammates\u00a0with the\u00a0nation looking on, he poses no threat. Actually,\u00a0he then becomes a\u00a0cash cow to the sports franchise and sneaker brand.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
Nike has a team of very intelligent individuals in every aspect of the brand working hard to ultimately increase sales. They know their customer and their\u00a0ever-changing target demographic.\u00a0\u00a0It would only make sense to\u00a0appeal\u00a0to\u00a0a group who, studies show,\u00a0has reached an estimated 1.3 trillion dollars in buying power \u2013 African Americans. If Nike chips away at least 10% of that figure, it would still be more than what the Red Hats wasted on purchasing the Nike-branded items that they set ablaze. \u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
Colin Kaepernick is a pretty smart man, too. To think for one second that he is not aware of the outside parties capitalizing on his movement, is quite\u00a0far-fetched. If I were him, this would be the moment in time to weigh the pros and cons of taking advantage of such a platform.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n
In less than seven days, because\u00a0Kaepernick stood his ground and held tight to the hope of bringing light a problem that was oftentimes\u00a0overshadowed by the fake American flag allegiance controversy\u00a0and other\u00a0political distractions, he can now begin to reap reward from the seeds that he\u2019s sown\u00a0in his demand for justice and equality.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n