“He was simply stating that Kaepernick would have gotten a similar opportunity if his playing hadn’t become subpar in the past couple seasons.”
Michael Vick had some advice for perhaps the most hated NFL player in recent history, Colin Kaepernick—who remains unemployed. The former quarterback, and convicted felon, spoke with sports commentator Jason Whitlock and blamed Kaepernick’s current situation on poor performance, saying…
“It has nothing to do with him being blackballed. The gesture that he made last year when he took the stand to do what he did, listen, we all appreciated it, we respected it, and it was a good thing. I really think the stand that he took has nothing to do with him not having a job playing in the National Football League right now.”
Vick continued to say that Colin Kaepernick could benefit from getting a haircut and going “clean-cut” in an effort to present a better image. Vick acknowledged he wasn’t going to be politically correct with his statements. The advice sounded the same as any other young person would receive facing unemployment and controversy. Of course, this interview sent social media into a frenzy.
According to the trending outrage, Michael Vick basically criminalized black hair texture and styles. Also, how dare he offer advice to Kaepernick? He isn’t in the same boat as Michael Vick in terms of criminal convictions and prison time, so Vick should be quiet. People overlooked the fact that Vick actually praised Kaepernick for his actions, and expressed that he would like to see him succeed.
Ironically, pointing out how extremely different Michael Vick’s situation was illustrates the very point that he set out to make. Michael Vick was convicted on federal charges for funding a dog fighting ring. He served 18 months in prison and managed to return to the NFL with a fresh start in Phildelphia.
Colin Kaepernick took a knee and can’t even get a job interview.
It makes absolutely no sense being angry that Michael Vick had a few words to offer, after his own journey coming back from something much worse.
Much of the outrage centered around the fact that Vick recommended a haircut and more grown up look. This was taken way out of context to suggest that Michael Vick—a black man—was attacking black hair textures and styles. This is quite a stretch, considering that Vick himself wore his hair in braids. In fact, he addressed his own transformation to presenting himself in a more professional manner in this aspect.
This is coming from a man who faced much more controversy than Colin Kaepernick ever did. Michael Vick’s athleticism and talent assured that he would have a second chance in the NFL. He was simply stating that Kaepernick would have gotten a similar opportunity if his playing hadn’t become subpar in the past couple seasons.
I guess in the land of outrage, social justice warriors, and retweets, anyone can be accused of being racist or criminalized based on their hair or skin color. Look, anyone who looks scruffy would have a more professional presentation if they cleaned their appearance up. Black, white, brown, pink, or blue. Scruffy is scruffy.
