“We’re not the land of the free nor the home of the brave right now” - San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler shocks MLB fans with bold political statement on gun control

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler has joined the multitudes of Americans voicing their opinions on United States gun control laws following Tueday's Robb Elementary School shooting. For those unaware, the shooting took place on May 24 at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. An 18-year-old gunman shot and killed 19 students and two teachers and injured 17 others.

Besides the inestimable grief that relatives and fellow students of the victims are suffering, the entire country is going through waves of emotions. Many politicians are calling for gun law reforms. Of course, this comes with pushback from those on the other side of the political compass who don't view this as the solution.

It's a touchy subject, but almost anyone with a platform is voicing their opinion for change, including San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler.

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler makes bold political statement on gun control

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler runs a blog titled kaplifestyle.com.

San Francisco Giants skipper Gabe Kapler runs a blog called Kaplifestyle. He uses it for a variety of reasons. Kapler enjoys writing about topics like fitness and nutrition, as well as his philosophies on sports and competition in general. Kapler is not just a baseball manager. He's an intellectual of sorts.

Now Kapler is using his blog to voice his standpoint on American gun violence and how he thinks it should be solved. His most recent post was titled "Home of the Brave?" In his tweet sharing the post, Kapler makes a heavy-handed statement: "[America] is not the land of the free."

"We’re not the land of the free nor the home of the brave right now." - @Gabe Kapler

In the post, Kapler hits the rewind button on his life. He recalls a moment when he was as young as the Robb Elementary School shooting victims.

"When I was the same age as the children in Uvalde," Kapler said, "my father taught me to stand for the pledge of allegiance when I believed my country was representing its people well or to protest and stay seated when it wasn’t. I don’t believe it is representing us well right now."

Kapler went on to describe the shooting and his dissapproval with how first responders — police officers, in particular — handled it.

"The police on the scene put a mother in handcuffs as she begged them to go in and save her children," he said. "They blocked parents trying to organize to charge in to stop the shooter, including a father who learned his daughter was murdered while he argued with the cops.

"Kapler: 'We aren’t free when politicians decide that the lobbyist and gun industries are more important than our children’s freedom to go to school without needing bulletproof backpacks and active shooter drills.'" - @ Alex Pavlovic

Kapler concluded his post by voicing his main opinion — his thesis. He talked about the guilt he felt bowing for the American national anthem when all he could think about was that his country is the "ONLY country where these mass shootings take place." Kapler said he wanted to take a knee during the anthem.

"My brain said drop to a knee; my body didn’t listen. I wanted to walk back inside; instead I froze. I felt like a coward. I didn’t want to call attention to myself. I didn’t want to take away from the victims or their families."

However, Kapler said he wishes he had dropped to a knee. He said his father always encouraged him to protest against political laws and policies he disagreed with. He encourages others to do likewise.

"When you’re dissatisfied with your country, you let it be known through protest," he said. "The home of the brave should encourage this."

The San Francisco Giants manager's comments will, no doubt, raise debate on both sides of the issue. But Kapler's words will, no doubt, get his fellow Americans thinking about it. That's enough for him.