**DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not reflect the official position of Her Campus or Her Campus SFA**
This past weekend President Trump expressed his disdain for the NFL players protesting police brutality by kneeling during the national anthem. According to a tweet by President Trump, “If a player wants the privilege of making millions of dollars in the NFL, he or she should not be allowed to disrespect our Great American Flag (or Country) and should stand for the National Anthem. If not, YOU’RE FIRED. Find something else to do!”
What President Trump fails to realize is that as recently as 2015, the Department of Defense was paying the NFL to participate in the national anthem as a means of increasing nationalism. Before this ploy by the government, NFL players would stay in their locker rooms until it was time for them to come onto the field.
The hashtag #TakeTheKnee was trending on Twitter in response to the decision of several NFL teams to kneel during the playing of the national anthem. The protest originally began when Colin Kaepernick, former member of the San Fransico 49ers, sat during the song to protest injustices.His main focus being the prejudiced murders of African Americans by members of law enforcement.
“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,” said Kaepernick in an interview with New York Daily News.
Kaepernick’s decision to sit during the National Anthem last season has worked its way into a controversial topic as many Americans view the gesture as a sign of disrespect to the United States military and to President Trump. On August 30, 2016, Nate Boyer, former Green Beret turned NFL player, penned a letter to Kaepernick about how his sitting affected him. In the letter, Boyer made it clear that he did not judge Kaepernick for standing up for what he believed in as the right to protest is his unalienable right, HOWEVER, it was how Kaepernick chose to protest that was upsetting to so many. Instead, Boyer suggested that Kaepernick should instead take a knee. At military funerals, a flag is folded and then presented to a family member of the fallen member while kneeling. By kneeling, Colin Kaepernick would still be respectful of those servicemen and women that have paid the ultimate price, while also protesting injustices.
#TakeTheKnee is a protest about social injustice, not hatred towards the President or disrespect for the military. All too often, as is the case in this situation, many Americans get so enraged over the idea of the American flag being disrespected that they forget what the flag represents-the American people. That includes equal rights and treatment for all. That is what our servicemen and women fight for every day. They fight for our right to protest, and whether you agree with the way these players have been going about it or not, I encourage you to take a step back and examine the state of our nation. How can we possibly move forward if the voices of so many are silenced?
(Source: Wikipedia)