What conservatives lack in Giants pitcher Sam Coonrod’s explanation for not kneeling

San Francisco Giants pitcher Sam Coonrod quickly became a hero in the conservative media on Friday morning after he decided not to kneel during a rally for the Black Lives Matter before the national anthem before the opening game of the Thursday season against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Coonrod was the lone player on both teams who did not kneel with his teammates and grabbed a black ribbon during a Morgan Freeman narration of racial inequality. After the narration was done, most players on the field rose to their feet again for the national anthem, with the exception of Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts and a group of Giants players and coaches who included Gabe. Kapler, Pablo Sandoval and Hunter Pence.

After the game, reporters asked Coonrod if he was the only player who represented both the rally and the national anthem.

“I just can’t address a couple of things I’ve read about Black Lives Matter, how they lean toward Marxism,” said Coonrod. “And … they said some negative things about the nuclear family. I just can’t address that.”

As the fact-checking website PolitiFact points out, one of the organizers of the original Black Lives Matter movement in 2013 said that she and the co-organizers were “trained Marxists,” and the official Black Lives Matter website currently states: “We interrupt the Western – prescribed the requirement of nuclear family structure supporting each other as extended families and ‘peoples’ who collectively care for each other. “

Coonrod also cited his religion as a decision not to kneel, stating that “he cannot kneel before anything other than God.” His comments were widely reported and praised by conservative sites like Breitbart and Daily Caller, but they both curiously omitted one of Coonrod’s later quotes about his teammates kneeling down for the rally.

After manager Gabe Kapler told reporters that he supported Coonrod’s decision to stand up, declaring: “We would let people express themselves … We would give them the choice of whether to stand, kneel, or do something else.” . Coonrod was grateful and regretted a growing intolerance for the opinions of others.

“The most I like of [Kapler] Until now, he told me that no matter how we differ in opinions, whether we agree or disagree with something, always respect what people say, “said Coonrod. “He won’t be mad if I disagree with him. I think that is part of the problem today: people get angry when someone disagrees. I’m not mad at someone who decided to kneel down. I just don’t think it’s too much to ask that I just have the same respect. “

While Coonrod does not harbor ill will towards teammates who decide to kneel before and during the anthem, that is not the case for many of the people who now sing aloud the praises of the Giants thrower.

President Donald Trump tweeted “the game is over” for him if players protest during the anthem, and Twitter is riddled with examples of conservative commentators who just mocked the left just two weeks ago for calling for boycotts of Goya who were now encouraging boycotts. of professional sports. Anthem protests.

Hypocrisy about “canceling the culture” has long been a problem for many conservatives, as the president tries to make it a campaign issue before the November election. If you taunt the left for boycotting Chick-fil-A, Hobby Lobby and other companies not woken up by certain political positions, you will not be able to set your Nike team on fire and crush Keurig machines for their respective political positions and call yourself an opponent of canceling culture.

Those who argue that there is something fundamentally different about Nike’s positions and the players who protest the anthem (allege that these positions are “anti-American”) ironically engage in the same thinking that the police exert on the left in reducing the scope of what It can be considered an acceptable opinion.

Eric Ting is a SFGATE reporter. Email: [email protected] | Twitter: @_ ericting