Oh, Say, Can You Kneel: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Newspaper Coverage of Colin Kaepernick’s Racial Protest

Abstract

In 2016, Colin Kaepernick, a Black NFL quarterback, began sitting and kneeling during the Star-Spangled Banner to protest oppression against people of color in the United States. Instead of beginning a discussion on race, however, Kaepernick’s resistance sparked criticisms that he was unpatriotic. Using aversive racism, symbolic/modern racism, and colorblind racism as a theoretical framework, this critical discourse analysis of ten American newspapers found that patriotic ideals—the American flag, military, and National Anthem, in particular—were used as a way to avoid completely discussions on racism.