Why Do NFL Protests?

In a demonstration of solidarity, more than one hundred and thirty NFL players have chosen to sit, kneel, or raise a fist during the national anthem. This is a movement that began last season when 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick chose to take a knee to protest police brutality against people of color. Although Kaepernick didn’t have much support from fellow players at the time, a recent turn of events has changed things. President Donald Trump’s recent commentary calling out those who chose to protest created contempt for him in the NFL community. In Megan Garber’s 2017 article entitled “They Took a Knee,” she examines exactly what Trump said and considers the impact of his words. It is indisputable that both the NFL players and our President

It’s almost as if nothing has changed in almost a hundred years’ time It is 2018 and instead of peace and unity between different races in America rising, instead police brutality has risen and also been a problem in America. Through Kapernick using his peaceful platform whilst trying to bring light to the victims through his great efforts of leadership, our president Donald Trump that we would have thought would have at least taken heed from the situation instead went and posted on twitter that he was very disgusted by the NFL for not fining the players for kneeling during the national anthem. To no avail, to make matters worse and very surprisingly the NFL made it a rule month after the President stated his opinion. One of the many unfortunate events following this sad episode was the Philadelphia Eagles not being accepted into the White House for their past accomplishment in winning the Super Bowl. As most historians and Americans know, it’s indeed a tradition to visit the White House after winning a league championship in any American Sport. This is what drives an athlete to play at the best of their ability. So now there is a gap between the government and the sport that most American’s love i.e., watching 22

In the most vulgar sense, Trump tweets implied that NFL players protesting the National Anthem needed to be fired. In addition, he suggested the NFL implement a rule that players cannot kneel during the National Anthem, commended Dallas Cowboy fans for booing players kneeling before one of their games, and suggested football fans stop attending games as a counter-protest. Trump’s recklessness positioned him as the center of the public controversy surrounding Kaepernick’s protests . Surprisingly, NFL leadership reached a consensus that they disapprove of the President’s

Roger Goodell,the NFL commissioner, was immediately interviewed after saying, "Well my personal thoughts are... I support our players when they want to see change in society, and we don't live in a perfect society. We live in an imperfect society. On the other hand, we believe very strongly in patriotism in the NFL. I personally believe very strongly in that. I think it's important to have respect for our country, for our flag, for the people who make our country better; for law enforcement, and for our military who are out fighting for our freedoms and our ideals."These are all important things for us, and that moment is a very important moment. So, I don't necessarily agree with what he is doing. We encourage our players to be respectful in that time and I like to think of it as a moment where we can unite as a country. And that's what we need more, and that's what I think football does - it unites our country. So I would like to see us focusing on our similarities and trying to bring people together.” after all this Kaepernick protests, players the Denver Broncos middle linebacker, and other players around the league, protested with

“Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say 'Get that son of a b***h off the field ... he's fired!'”

“President Donald Trump is criticizing the NFL over players kneeling during the national anthem. Trump has suggested the owners should "fire" any players who knelt during the "Star Spangled Banner.” Third Paragraph

Sports, particularly football, has became a political debate in September. The author of the article, CNN Sophie Tatum, called “Athletes, activists spar on kneeling National Anthem protests”. She explained that President Donald Trump began to criticize players on his twitter account who would kneel during the national anthem to protest against police brutality. Sophie Tatum writes that Trump and his aides are arguing that the protests are unpatriotic and disrespectful to the flag. Trump also adds that it is disrespectful to the people who fought to protect our country. Although players argue that they are just exercising free speech. In the beginning of the article Sophie Tatum adds an interview, Spike Lee, who is speaking out for the players who take a knee. He defends the players that they are simply protesting against law enforcement and want to be heard on the issues at hand. Reading the title of the article before I read the rest and

In the tweets, he disregarded why the NFL players were kneeling. He disregarded who started it, the reason, and assumed it was a big middle finger to the flag and country. This really shows in tweets such as, “respect our flag and our country!” and “standing in locked arms is good, kneeling is not acceptable.” (Trump)

Many players and their coaches have been protesting police brutality by ‘taking-a-knee’ during the Pledge of Allegiance. The media has been sharing and it has now become a bigger deal since the president has addressed it by saying "Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a b---h off the field right now. Out. He's fired. He's fired!" This riled up many Trump supports, secially when later on he tweeted that it had nothing to do with race and that it was about respecting the country. This leads many people to believe that the NFL players are just disrespecting their country. The stereotype about African Americans, that they are often disrespectful, is also being used to ‘justify’ what a lot of the media has to say. But, the real reason many NFL players are protesting is because they think that they shouldn't have to stand if they don't have pride for their country, and they have the right to do so, according to their first amendment. They don't lose the right to protest when they go on the field like some of the media thinks so. Many people, often white believe they live in a just- world because they have never had to deal with the racism many African Americans are dealing with so they do not think it is a big deal and that they are protesting to be disrespectful. The illusory correlation can also

It all started on the 22nd, when Trump was hosting a rally in Alabama. During his speech to the crowd, the president turned his attention on the NFL, and the recent trend of players kneeling during the national anthem. Trump said owners should “get that son of a bitch off the field right now” when faced with a kneeling player, and fire them as soon as possible. The pro-Trump crowd went into wild applause, but many others saw the quote in a different light.

As I am one of the many people offended by these players actions, it seems the people most offended are the ones serving or that have served our country. A letter was sent to the commissioner of the NFL, “They are essentially spitting in the faces and on the graves of real men, men who have actually done something for

Now, President Trump has become an impulse of the matter. Last Friday, He said that NFL players should be fired for kneeling during the national anthem.

He stated that players who kneel for the National Anthem should immediately fired. This sparked an uproar from most of the players in the NFL as well as owners of teams. Two days after the statement, NFL teams took the field as they do any other Sunday during the year. This week was different though. A group of players from every took a knee during the National Anthem. Over 200 players throughout the NFL decided to rally with each other and protest the President's’ remarks.

The statements Obama made during this interview are almost directly converse to those made by current president Donald Trump in his speech on National Anthem Protests. In his speech, Trump stated, “Wouldn’t [Americans] love to see one of these NFL owners [...] say, “Get that son-of-a-bitch off the field right now. Out. He’s fired.”” But, why fire the NFL players? Many people believe that the NFL players are protesting the

Not just because it flagrantly insults the concept of liberty that true patriotism embraces, but also because his focus threatens to turn standing for the national anthem into a partisan act.” (Zorn). Trump has turned the protest into a major issue because he says it is unpatriotic, but it is a vast form of patriotism. The athletes are protesting because they do not like how America is, but some cannot get over the “disrespect” to the flag. In “National anthem protests are about racism, not patriotism,” Scanlon states, “For them, America has not been well. For them, the flag stands for institutionalized racism and the obstacles they face for something as arbitrary as the color of their skin. Colin Kaepernick, the player who began the movement last year, even decided to take a knee instead of sitting after a conversation with a veteran last year. There is nothing more these players could have done to make it clear that kneeling is a way for them to bring light to issues and generate a discussion, not show disrespect for the military” (Scanlon). The athletes kneel to make a major statement and brings light to racism. Although some (including the president) find the protest disrespectful, the athletes are making a large patriotic statement. The athletes use patriotism in a form of freedom of speech for how institutional racism is still active in the U.S.