#VeteransForKaepernick pic.twitter.com/3jnCtawvHc
— Commie Bebop🌹 (@punkproletarian) September 24, 2017
As the discourse rolls on regarding former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick‘s decision to take a knee during the national anthem–and the movement his protest ignited–support for the blacklisted athlete-cum-activist is sprouting up across the country.
Yesterday afternoon, on Twitter, some of that support came from U.S. Army Infantry Officer and U.S. Military Academy at West Point alumnus, Spenser Rapone.
Rapone posts under the handle @punkproletarian and is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Under the hashtag #VeteransForKaepernick, he tweeted an image of himself raising the left clenched-fist of solidarity, support and resistance as well as the message, “Communism Will Win” taped inside of his West Point uniform cap. Also visible in the photograph is Rapone’s Combat Infantryman Badge–meaning he has fought in active ground combat.
Rapone followed up his initial post with retweeted images of other #VeteransForKaepernick in their combat uniforms.
LawNewz verified the legitimacy of the photograph with Rapone himself. He is currently in the field until Friday and unable to answer detailed questions, but a Medium post authored by the Infantry Officer details some of his views. He wrote, following the murder of socialist Heather Heyer during the Charlottesville neo-Nazi rallies:
The toppling of the Confederate Soldiers Memorial in Durham, North Carolina has sounded the death knell for any and all displays of Confederate aggrandizement in the United States as well as abroad. Yet, the shadow of the Confederacy and its efforts to preserve slavery is not limited to the southern United States.
The response to Rapone’s tweet has been mostly supportive–though some have raised concerns about his personal and job safety–and the image is quickly approaching viral status. He later sought to clear up any confusion by posting another image of himself. This time, sporting a Che Guevara t-shirt underneath his half-buttoned uniform, Rapone tweeted, “In case there was any lingering doubt, hasta la victoria siempre,” a popular slogan attributed to the late Marxist revolutionary, physician, and guerrilla leader who was ultimately killed and captured by the United States’ own CIA.
In case there was any lingering doubt, hasta la victoria siempre pic.twitter.com/0XrW38wcCk
— Commie Bebop🌹 (@punkproletarian) September 25, 2017
[image via screengrab]
Follow Colin Kalmbacher on Twitter: @colinkalmbacher
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