How it Started"A house divided against itself cannot stand." - Abraham Lincoln Even people who don't care about sports have either heard or debated this issue. Just as Lincoln said, the NFL's "house" is not standing; it's "kneeling." The moment former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick knelt during a 2016 preseason game, another debate began, and it was not about the 2016 presidential election. After the game, Kaepernick said he refused to stand because of what he thought the American flag represented. "I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," Kaepernick said. "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." Ripple EffectIn the 2017 season, Kaepernick sat at home while hundreds of players knelt during the anthem after comments from President Donald Trump. Trump strongly disagreed with these anthem protests in a speech in Alabama on September 22, 2017. "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," Trump said. "'Out! He’s fired. He’s fired!'" The players fired back, with hundreds of players around the league kneeling for the anthem; ironically, not many players did so until Trump's speech. Many fans booed players, turned off TVs and the NFL became the most controversial sports league in the world. Why Kneel?The argument for kneeling is that it is a First Amendment right of freedom of speech. Americans have the right to protest without forms of violence, so kneeling before the anthem is a peaceful demonstration. Another reason for kneeling is to establish unity. Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Melvin Ingram said in the Los Angeles Times that what NFL players are doing isn't intended to divide. "We aren't trying to be divided in any way, shape or form," Ingram said. "We're just trying to show that we are one unit, one country, one world — everything." Los Angeles Rams and former New England Patriots wide receiver Brandin Cooks said in WEEI that he wants to stand with this teammates whether standing or kneeling for the anthem. “It’s one of those things where you want to stand with your brothers, kneel with your brothers, and be by their side,” Cook said. why Not Kneel?The backlash about the anthem protests are that they disrespect the military. So many men and women died while fighting to keep America safe and the flag represents freedom. Also, the protests create even more division among Americans. Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston said in the Los Angeles Times that the protests do not make anything different. "People are complaining about kneeling and standing, but I feel like it's pointless because it's not changing anything," Houston said. Clemson University football head coach Dabo Sweeney said these things can be very distracting. (Source: ProCon.org) "I don't think it's good to be a distraction to your team, Sweeney said. "I don't think it's good to use your team as the platform." My TakeI never agreed with the protests, plain and simple.
The national anthem is the one thing that unites each American citizen no matter what gender, race, language, religion, political beliefs, etc. Sporting events, like football, also unite countless numbers of fans, especially for the anthem. But now, one of the last forms of bonding us Americans have with each other is gone. With these protests, no progress is happening in the country. If athletes want to TRULY make a difference, then they should use their MILLIONS of dollars and their status in society to work with police officers and governmental officials. A sporting event is not a place for protesting, especially not when fans are supposed to come together to salute the flag of our country. Like I can't go to my job in the real world and protest something, my employer would tell me to do that on my own time outside the office. It's the same thing for the players; do protesting on your own time! When I watch sports, I want to put everything else behind for a short time to enjoy something I've loved my whole life. I don't want to worry about what Trump said or what scandalous thing someone in Washington, D.C. has done while trying to see if my team will win a game or not. If the athletes stuck to making change in the real world, progress WILL happen. Sources:
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Daniel Benitez Archives
April 2020
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