Special Topic: Football vs Kneeball

Lot’s of sniping about NFL and NBA players “taking a knee” during the national anthem.  When this first popped up, my initial response was:  kneeling is more reverential. Why be upset about it?

I don't consider kneeling as disrespectful.  I kneel at church all the time. I'm not protesting God.  If you want to protest, take a seat on the bench, or dance the Bartman.  But, this is the method that was chosen, so be it.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of flag burning, or national anthem sitting.  But, I understand the statement.  I understand the little kid in my 5th grade class who was a Jehovah’s Witness.  He didn’t stand during the pledge and the class turned out ok.  The fabric of American society did not crumble.  People have protested for YEARS (as in two hundred of them) and America hasn’t fallen a part yet.  We’ve had a few close calls, but we’ve made it through.

A subset of citizens feel that “liberty and justice for all” doesn’t apply to them, or isn’t applied equitably.  Given statistics on incarceration - 1 in 3 black men are likely to be imprisoned as opposed to 1 in 9 of all men, or 1 in 17 of white men - they have a case.  Another statistic that ran across my attention recently, is that after WWII, out of the first 67,000 loans provided through the G.I. bill, only 100 were for non-white applicants. Yes, 100.

Take stats like these on top of the civil rights movement not even being 100 years old yet, fights over confederate statues in town squares, recent shootings by police of young black men (regardless of the justification) and white supremacists making their way back into mainstream media, we have American citizens who are hurting.  And, these people who are hurting are those least likely to have a platform that can push for change.

Those who have the platform, and understand what their communities are suffering with, have an obligation to bring it to the national stage. Regardless of what career they find themselves in, they have an obligation to do what is right and just for those who can't speak for themselves.

So many of you are saying how shameful it is for an NFL player kneel during the anthem since so many people died for his freedom to even play football.

You want to know what I find more shameful?  NOT using those rights that so many gave their lives to ensure.  Freedom means nothing if it isn’t exercised.  I don’t always agree with the motivations, or vehicle, but I agree you have a right to do so.  I will also respect the fact you may not agree with me, but we need to allow others the ability to exercise their freedoms based on their conscious.

At the end of the day, the most important takeaway is this:  people didn’t die for a flag or a song.  They died for the freedoms those symbols were created to represent.

Let’s keep it that way.