Throughout the past year, many players in the NFL have protested the national anthem in various ways, the biggest and most controversial of which is taking a knee for the duration of the national anthem. The most recent protests came from none other than the Cleveland Browns in their Monday night game against the Giants a couple of weeks ago.
According to CBS Sports, “[A] dozen Browns players went to a knee during the national anthem in the largest protest from a group of football players the NFL has seen. The presence of tight end Seth DeValve, one of the first white players to take a knee, had a profound impact on many who saw the protest.”
This being the largest protest yet, it was met with backlash from the Cleveland police union, which “is now refusing to hold the American flag during the first Browns regular season game in protest of the protest from the Browns players,” according to CBS Sports.
Sure, to some the protest seems necessary, giving individuals and groups a place to show their voice, but I do not think the national anthem is the right place to do it.
The national anthem is supposed to unite the nation, not tear it apart. By protesting during the national anthem, these players are not only standing up against police violence, they are standing up against the entire nation.
The regular season has not even started yet, and already these protests are hitting the ground running, Colin Kaepernick hasn’t been signed “allegedly” because of his prior actions and the nature of the national anthem has been tossed into the air through the NFL.
Many people, including children, look up to sports players. These “professionals” are using their voice in a smart way to convey a message to an audience, but foolishly as in the time and place to do so, strictly due to the bigger picture at hand: the entire United States of America.