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Essay / Stereotypes about African Americans
Recently, there has been an uprising against police brutality against African Americans. The face of this revolution is Colin Kaepernick, a 30-year-old quarterback. In 2016, during one of his NFL games, he took a knee during the national anthem. He hasn't played in the NFL since that year. At first, most people found this disrespectful to the American anthem and flag, but we later discovered that it called attention to a problem that needed to be addressed. The problem being the racial injustice shown by police officers towards African-Americans. He became a major player in the “Black Lives Matter” movement. He became the face of Nike's 30th anniversary campaign. His slogan was “Believe in something.” Even if it means sacrificing everything » Did he sacrifice his career or will he be even more famous for the movement he had the courage to launch? (rhetorical question)Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Police officers have unacceptable stereotypes about African Americans. They target African Americans simply because they are black. Young African American men are stopped by the police and if they move, the police feel justified in shooting. Like they think they're looking for a gun. Many of these African American men who were shot were unarmed. Stephon Clark was shot to death in his grandparents' backyard on March 18 when police mistook his cellphone for a gun. African American men are stereotyped. A stereotype is defined as “a widely held but fixed and oversimplified idea or image of a particular type of person or thing.” (Google Dictionary) African Americans are labeled by police as delinquents and criminals and are not afforded the same courtesies as whites, who are now considered privileged. Kaepernick's protests cost him his NFL job. Pompous and privileged (alliteration) President Donald Trump even gets involved in the conversation by saying that NFL players who "take a knee" should be fired. The NFL attempted to marginalize Kaepernick and other players by banning kneeling during the national anthem. Players who kneel are subject to a fine and some form of punishment. The definition of marginalization is “treating a person, group, or concept as insignificant or peripheral.” (Google Dictionary) That's exactly what's happening, they're trying to push Kaepernick's move aside and make it forget. But much to the disappointment of President Trump and the NFL, the new Nike campaign has brought new life to the call to action. The movement reaches a wider and louder audience. I think you could say that American law enforcement has transgressed. Transgressing is defined as “violating or exceeding the boundaries (of a moral principle or other established standard of behavior). » (Google Dictionary) They are not fair to young people or African-American men. They are happy the moment they see their dark skin (imagery). The saddest part of this conversation is also that very few of these police officers are found criminally negligent for their transgressions. For example, Freddie Gray, 25, from Baltimore, died seven days after suffering a fatal spinal cord injury following an arrest. He died on April 19, 2015. He was arrested for carrying a knife after making eye contact with a bicycle patrol officer. He was handcuffed and placed in a police van. No one could explain how he got.