Author's note: this was originally published in September of 2017. Recent events have merited a re-post.
Since August 2016, there have been two kinds-- well, three kinds of people: those who think that is it wonderful and noble that Colin Kaepernick and other pro-athletes are sitting or kneeling during the National Anthem; those who think not standing for the anthem is a crime that should ruin the rest of your life; and those who don’t care either way and/or have no idea it’s even happening. Several other players have either joined Kaepernick or said they disagree with his actions. Many Republican commentators have played stupid (because they know they aren’t being honest) and have screamed at these peaceful protesters like they are somehow being personally insulted or injured, and have made their demonstrations out to be complaints about their own lives and not about a larger community. Sadly, many who have been inspired by those demonstrating have skewed the message and let their thanks and solidarity be shown through useless vandalism and sometimes violence. Perhaps more annoyingly than anything though is that ESPN and sports commentators have decided they must all share their opinions on this topic rather than talking about the reason we all tune in: sports. I don’t mind them having and sharing their opinions at all, even on air, but when your sports analysis show starts to sound like a slightly less arrogant Rachel Maddow and a slightly less angry Sean Hannity hybrid, you’ve lost sight of your objective.
I haven’t stood firmly or loudly on this issue. I love football and I watch college and professional games every weekend during the season, and like EVERY OTHER PERSON watching at home, I stay seated during the National Anthem. I, of course, support the free speech of any of these figures to protest and demonstrate peacefully and quite respectfully as they have done. I do also support the teams’ and owners’ rights to disassociate with any players who they believe are no longer serving their intended purpose. I do not support or agree with loud-mouthed commentators absolutely misrepresenting the clearly stated sentiments {of Kaepernick specifically} after he started remaining seated for the anthem. Once his chosen posture was noticed (it took three weeks for anyone to even realize it), those who believe that absolutely nothing is wrong with the treatment of different races by law enforcement, or with law enforcement in general, lost their collective minds. They claimed that Kaepernick was complaining about how he is treated, saying that he is oppressed by people paying him millions of dollars, taking a swing at all white people including his adoptive parents, disrespecting all the troops, and declaring his disdain for America. This all after his statement below:
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.”
“Getting away with murder” referred to Philando Castille who was the next in a line of people {black and otherwise} killed at the hand of a police officer who was not convicted though there was no crime committed by the person killed. Kaepernick continued:
"I'm going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me, this is something that has to change. When there's significant change and I feel that flag represents what it's supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to, I'll stand. This stand wasn’t for me. This is because I’m seeing things happen to people that don’t have a voice, people that don’t have a platform to talk and have their voices heard, and effect change. So I’m in the position where I can do that and I’m going to do that for people that can’t.
It's something that can unify this team. It's something that can unify this country. If we have these real conversations that are uncomfortable for a lot of people. If we have these conversations, there's a better understanding of where both sides are coming from.
I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country. I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. That’s not happening. People are dying in vain because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody. That’s something that’s not happening. I’ve seen videos, I’ve seen circumstances where men and women that have been in the military have come back and been treated unjustly by the country they fought have for, and have been murdered by the country they fought for, on our land. That’s not right.”
Team Kaepernick or not, his words were not confusing. Those who chose to misrepresent him did so because they knew they could rile people up and get more views and hits. That’s it. Even if you disagree that there are people being mistreated, using your voice for others is a beautiful thing, and there was no hate or rudeness in Colin’s words. In fact, Kaepernick and the other athletes who chose to sit in protest with him met with a veteran to ask how they could continue in what they saw as a worthy cause while remaining respectful of the men and women in the military. It was after this meeting that they chose to kneel rather than to sit.
“We were talking to [Nate Boyer] about how can we get the message back on track and not take away from the military, not take away from fighting for our country, but keep the focus on what the issues really are. And as we talked about it, we came up with taking a knee. Because there are issues that still need to be addressed and it was also a way to show more respect to the men and women who fight for this country.”
Seriously, this guy has done everything to present his position with class and respect. We all see nobility in standing up for those who don’t have a voice. As a Christian, I see the support for anyone who will use their time in the spotlight to give voice to martyrs, to share the gospel, or simply to give thanks to God (#tebowing, anyone?). Politically though, both the right and the left change their tunes on this when it is someone they disagree with who is giving their voice. Elitist leftists in entertainment love to lend their voices to causes, but there is well known public and private shaming of conservatives who would do the same. Right-wing pundits complain endlessly when singers or actors use their platform to support liberal politicians or talk about climate change, yet when an actress wears a pro-Trump dress to an award show, she’s lauded and praised. Each side holds an embarrassing double standard.
As I said earlier, I haven’t held passionate agreement or disagreement during this nationwide conversation. As in all things, I favor more freedom and more liberty, so I’ve been more supportive and empathetic of those protesting. The fact that those vehemently against the BLM protesters (and I can grant that many of them whether in desperation, anger, or ignorance have abandoned protest for rioting which helps nothing) are not supporting this peaceful representation of a protected and cherished right we Americans hold is truly asinine. Regardless though, my decision to remain mostly supportive but quiet on the matter of football players kneeling during the anthem was changed after comments from our president.
“Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He's fired.”
{I've sat in complete silence for 2 minutes - I truly don’t know where to go from here just yet. Each time I read or listen to those words, I just sit, stunned.}
Okay. So. Yeah. Just like every other citizen, our president has freedom of speech and a right to his own opinion. He also has the right to express himself, even with vulgarity. He has however proved {again, and again, and again} that what he thinks to be true of these players is actually true of him: he is not serving his intended purpose as the LEADER of our country. You see, it is the job of the NFL players to make plays, score points, win games! If they chose to use their platform for a cause and their actions do not violate the contracts they entered into with the NFL, then there’s no harm, no foul. The presidency, however, is not about entertainment. You don’t score points by tweeting, your job isn’t to win a game each week - you are the representation of each and every citizen and you are meant to lead the nation. What has always baffled me about Trump supporters is that many of them are smart; many are business owners or executives. Never would you ever hire someone to lead so much as a small group in your company who came into the interview and was rude, abrasive, sexually crude, short-tempered, thoughtless, who showed no skill of critical thinking, and who mocked and ridiculed those within the group who brought up a concern. You’d show them the door after 5 minutes! We have allowed the presidency to devolve into a role on a reality show at best, and at worst {and probably more accurate based on the sheep-like way Trump supporters follow his every move with adoration} the head of something more religious than political. Ron Paul wrote on this same subject this week, and put it quite terrifyingly:
“Unfortunately, many in America view politicians as having divine status. Politicians are considered the Church Elders in the government religion. From the perspective of Liberty and Freedom, what if Trump's words are taken seriously? What if someday the rest of the government's Church Elders decide to take out the guns to enforce this edict?...
It’s not out of the question at all. Americans have been programmed, both right and left, to follow their leader. They look to their party and the one(s) in the lead and are ready to follow them straight into hell {which is ultimately where it seems both political wings are determined to take us}. Donald Trump however is not meant to be leading just the Republicans, and he’s not supposed to be the head of the mouth breathers who simply like his tweets and stroke his ego and get off on his big man talk. He is supposed to be the leader of the United States of America! We have people feeling marginalized, discriminated against, and unheard; we have riots breaking out when justice fails; we have Antifa who are sadly yet hilariously completely fascistic, looking to get into violent altercations anywhere they can; we have white nationalists doing all the dumb racist garbage they do; we have over 150 families in Texas and Florida heartbroken as their loved ones died in the recent hurricanes (and thousands more who have lost all but their lives and are still in need of so much); we are 16-years into a failed War on Terror; we are the most incarcerated nation per capita thanks to out-dated drug laws; and we are $20 trillion in debt, but our president, our leader, decides it is more important to make sure a handful of athletes stand for a song or are fired. Sorry guys, there is no getting around this now: we are a nation crumbling and a society that is tearing apart. This once beautiful country is in distress and taking a knee seems about the most sane thing to do. Who cares about saying the pledge right now? We’re one step away from turning those flags upside down.
I do not participate in the fear mongering that the old parties employ so often, so I will end my warning cries there. My sentiments now should be quite plain. I support any and all Americans taking a knee during the anthem and in fact, I would encourage it. I know that any of my solidly conservative friends who actually read this will endow me with the label “libtard” afterwards, but so be it: I’d like to see every single American-loving, troop-supporting, melting-pot embracing, player, coach, manager, attendee, vendor, or passerby at those games tomorrow take a knee for no other reason than to send a message to President Trump to, for the love of God, stop being a petty, self-absorbed, self-gratifying bully and learn how to be a competent leader. Stop trying to be the cool guy in the fraternity and grow the hell up! There are more than 300 million people in this country and right now you care about the opinions of about 1% of them, instead of the concerns, fears, hardships, and desperation of the nation at large. Based on merits, you are the only one in this conversation who needs to be fired.
Final note...
Democrats/Liberals/Leftists/What-have-you, I don’t like much you do or say; you hate the right, yet are so similar it hurts. That being said, if you actually want to see a world where Trump isn’t re-hired in 2020, maybe you could start focusing on real issues {plenty listed above} and point out REAL evil rather than trying to keep conservative speakers off college campuses. Your childishness is equal to that of Trumps and your use of violence is criminal. Stop it. Do something good.
“Don't let the love for a symbol overrule the love for your fellow human.” -Arian Foster (formerly of the Houston Texans)