Police Brutality: The Black Lives Matter Movement

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Police brutality is a prevalent issue in today’s society due to racial bias authorities use in determining the extent in which force should used, and the reality that cops are not held accountable for shooting unarmed black individuals. The Black Lives Matter Movement has worldwide attention, and one of the most significant acts of public controversy that resulted from the kneeling protests of the U.S. National Anthem initiated by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick’s decision to protest the National Anthem inspired a diverse multitude of professional athletes to follow his example. Public scrutiny has been the only known consequence for these athletes exercising their First Amendment rights, but the detriment which negative press can cause to these celebrities’ brands can be intimidating enough to discourage athletes from continuing to publicly support the cause. The major stakeholders involved in this controversy are professional athletes, athletic sponsors, political figures, and the press. It is interesting that groups of stakeholders are heavily divided on this issue. …show more content…

Simpson and Tiki Barber believe Colin Kapernick was wrong for taking this stance, while many of Kapernick’s colleagues supported the movement by performing the same type of protest as I previously stated. Even the two most recent United States Presidents are divided on the issue. President Obama agrees with my position that Kapernick and the other professional athletes were exercising their constitutional rights, while President Trump finds the athletes actions to be disrespectful and worthy of termination from their respective teams. Black-ish is a ABC television is comedy show reputed for discussing controversy topics, the backlash from this issue has persuaded ABC to shelf the episode about NFL players kneeling during the National

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