August 2016. That was the first time San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem. No one noticed. Not one person said anything, until a Black reporter (this is why diversity matters) asked Kaepernick if his remaining seated during the patriotic song had political meaning. It did.

I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color, Kaepernick said . To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.

Before Kaepernick took a knee, Michael Brown happened. Tamir Rice happened. Walter Scott , Alton Sterling and Philando Castile all happened. Black America was still in the bargaining phase of grief. We were willing to barter our way to humankind; literally negotiating with systemic racism, yelling, Arent I a person, too? Black Lives Matter was never a rallying cry against humanity, it was always a petition for it. It was as much a statement as it was a question. It was less authoritative and more rhetorical, because at the rate that Black blood was being spilled, Black America needed to know if our lives meant anything to the people who were killing us.

After Kaepernicks protest Stephon Clark happened . Breonna Taylor happened . And then, George Floyd happened.

On May 25, 2020, Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyds neck for some nine minutes and America couldnt look away. Whatever excuses Americans could make as to why Tamir Rice was shot and killed, or how many items Micheal Brown allegedly took from a corner store before his death, they couldnt make sense of an officer kneeling on the neck of a man who literally begged for his life.

Its amazing that the story of Americas racist history can be boiled down to two knees: one kneeling against injustice and the other literally on the neck of a Black man until he died.

The NFL like much of corporate America was forced to make a decision: admit that Black Lives Matter or quickly find itself on the wrong side of history. Everyone caved. They always do. But not because they cared. They just didnt want to lose money.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell released an 81-second video filmed in the basement of his home in Bronxville, New York, basically stating that Colin Kaepernick was right all along.

We, the National Football League, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of Black people, Goodell said, in what can only be considered the biggest act of bullshit known to man. We, the National Football League, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest. We, the National Football League, believe Black lives matter.