--- title: There's No Such Thing As a Selective Patriot description: Tulsa, Okla., police killed Terence Crutcher in cold blood. The video is hard to watch. canonical: https://time.com/4504012/terence-crutcher-patriotism/ author: Eddie S. Glaude Jr. article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-09-22T13:09:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-07-09T08:20:02.579Z article:section: Ideas og:title: There's No Such Thing As a Selective Patriot og:description: Colin Kaepernick is right to take a knee og:url: https://time.com/4504012/terence-crutcher-patriotism/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d36a007bd24d8cb/6988a71a0a4a2243ed9cb5eb/colin-k.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5568 og:image:height: 3132 og:image:alt: Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel in protest during the national anthem prior to playing the Los Angeles Rams in their NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sept. 12, 2016. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: There's No Such Thing As a Selective Patriot twitter:description: Colin Kaepernick is right to take a knee twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d36a007bd24d8cb/6988a71a0a4a2243ed9cb5eb/colin-k.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # There's No Such Thing As a Selective Patriot > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=51b8177c-a3ac-4f7b-9792-f9bc6e6e86f1&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Globally minded knowledge seekers. Readers who turn to journalism to understand the world, with meaningful concentrations among educators, students, media professionals, civic institutions and knowledge workers. ### TIME Inside TIME: key statements * Inside TIME is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Inside TIME is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=51b8177c-a3ac-4f7b-9792-f9bc6e6e86f1&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/subscribe?i=51b8177c-a3ac-4f7b-9792-f9bc6e6e86f1&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is Inside TIME? Inside TIME is a twice-weekly newsletter written by TIME Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=51b8177c-a3ac-4f7b-9792-f9bc6e6e86f1&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1)  by [Eddie S. Glaude Jr.](https://time.com/author/eddie-s-glaude-jr/)  ## Eddie S. Glaude Jr. Sep 22, 2016 1:09 PM UTC  Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel in protest during the national anthem prior to playing the Los Angeles Rams in their NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sept. 12, 2016. Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel in protest during the national anthem prior to playing the Los Angeles Rams in their NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sept. 12, 2016. Thearon W. Henderson—Getty Images  by [Eddie S. Glaude Jr.](https://time.com/author/eddie-s-glaude-jr/)  ## Eddie S. Glaude Jr. Sep 22, 2016 1:09 PM UTC Tulsa, Okla., police killed Terence Crutcher in cold blood. The video is hard to watch. You see a black man with his hands up, walking toward his stalled vehicle and posing little threat to the officer, who has her weapon drawn. He was unarmed. Within 30 seconds of the arrival of police backup, Crutcher was tased and shot. The aerial footage showed his body falling helplessly to the ground. Blood poured into the street under him. And the police offered little assistance to save the man one officer described as “a bad dude.” On Sept. 14, just two days earlier, Tyre King was killed by police officers in Columbus, Ohio. He was only 13 years old. Officers responded to a report of teenagers engaged in an armed robbery of $10\. When they arrived on the scene, the police confronted three black males who matched the description. King, the police reported, ran, then reached for what turned out to be a BB gun in his waistband and was shot “multiple times.” His parents hired an independent forensic pathologist. “Based on the location and the direction of the wound paths it is more likely than not Tyre King was in the process of running away from the shooter or shooters when he suffered all three gunshot wounds,” Dr. Francisco Diaz, the medical examiner in Wayne County, Michigan, reported. King was only 5 ft. tall and weighed less than 100 lb.—visibly a child. Colin Kaepernick of the San Francisco 49ers has refused to stand for the national anthem in protest of monstrous acts like these. He and other athletes who have followed his lead have been viciously criticized. Accused of being unpatriotic and of betraying the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. These are the same people who recently booed President Obama’s 9/11 tribute video in football stadiums across the country; the same people who would describe Cliven Bundy, the Nevada cattle rancher who launched an armed standoff with law enforcement, as a patriot; the same people who defend the Confederate flag. They are selective patriots. We should not take them seriously. Instead, we must continue to fight for our dead. Protect our children. And defend an idea of democracy where lives of the likes of Terence Crutcher and Tyre King are valued as much as those of any white person in this country. Until then, continue to take a knee, Colin Kaepernick. And the selective patriots can go to hell. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4504012/terence-crutcher-patriotism/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4504012/terence-crutcher-patriotism/"},"headline":"There's No Such Thing As a Selective Patriot","datePublished":"2016-09-22T13:09:13.000Z","dateModified":"2026-07-09T08:20:02.579Z","description":"Colin Kaepernick is right to take a knee","url":"https://time.com/4504012/terence-crutcher-patriotism/","keywords":["Sports topic","Race","Colin Kaepernick"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d36a007bd24d8cb/6988a71a0a4a2243ed9cb5eb/colin-k.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eddie S. Glaude Jr.","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eddie-s-glaude-jr/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d36a007bd24d8cb/6988a71a0a4a2243ed9cb5eb/colin-k.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel in protest during the national anthem prior to playing the Los Angeles Rams in their NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sept. 12, 2016.","caption":"Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 of the San Francisco 49ers kneel in protest during the national anthem prior to playing the Los Angeles Rams in their NFL game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Sept. 12, 2016.","creditText":"Thearon W. Henderson—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4504012/terence-crutcher-patriotism/","name":"There's No Such Thing As a Selective Patriot"}}]}] ```