Max Kellerman shut down Stephen A. Smith’s comments on Colin Kaepernick’s workout

Well said.

In the couple days since Colin Kaepernick held his own Atlanta-area workout away from the Falcons practice facility on Saturday, we’ve seen multiple prominent NFL media personalities essentially carry water for the league.

Both pregame shows on CBS and NBC had decidedly pro-NFL stances — with Boomer Esiason even calling Kaepernick’s grievance against the NFL a “shakedown” — and ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith also blamed Kaepernick for how he didn’t jump at the opportunity to participate in hastily planned NFL workout with a sketchy waiver and no control over the video footage.

Come Monday’s edition of First Take, co-host Max Kellerman had an opportunity to respond to Smith’s criticism. Kellerman addressed his own privilege as a white man while shutting down Smith’s pro-NFL argument.

Kellerman said:

“The reality is here’s the African-American plight. Here’s ways that are effective to deal with it. Here’s ways that are maybe idealistic but ineffective and people not actually in the struggle because race is tied to class in an inextricable way in this country. Careful how much you kind of idealize things, and let’s deal with reality. I appreciate that argument.

“First of all, should Kaepernick be grateful to, as I said, a de facto monopoly who has a greater responsibility to be fair for being denied his right to work for three years. For no other reason. By the way, he broke no rules, he broke no laws.”

He continued:

“What am I to do with my privilege as a white man and as a person on TV with an enormous platform? Which, by the way, I benefit from the platform that you (Stephen A.) built primarily. What am I to do with that power? Right? Am I to support the power structure that where injustice is ongoing or should I speak truth to power using that privilege and that platform?

“When you say things like, ‘Colin Kaepernick, who are you as a black man — and now you’re given this opportunity — who are you to ask questions about who the receivers are gonna be? Why it’s last minute?’ OK, you may be right. People may be right. Like, ‘Colin, it’s not going to be perfect. You’re asking them for a job. It’s not gonna be perfect.’ However, you know who I am? I’m a member of the media who will ask that question.

“Why was the workout arranged in this way? Why was there an ultimatum with 48 hours to accept? Why was the waiver not the standard waiver? … Why only on that day? Why weren’t cameras allowed in? Why hasn’t he been working for three years? I will ask those questions, and I will also say while you can focus on the world we actually live in where you wear a Kunta Kinte shirt, the white billionaires aren’t going to like it. I am going to talk about the world we ought to live in. And bring pressure to bear that sooner than later we do live in world where ‘so the hell what someone shows up with a Kunta Kinte shirt.'”

He went on to address Kaepernick’s Kunta Kinte shirt.

The argument even had Kellerman’s ESPN colleague Jay Williams taking to Twitter to voice his respect.

You can watch the entire segment here.

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