The United States is in tumultuous times. The country is split between the two dominating political parties, North Korea is threatening our welfare, and militant activists are wreaking havoc in the streets.
During this era in time, we should be showing an undivided national front. Coming together as citizens working toward the goal of moral, physical, and societal betterment.
Recent events involving the NFL have put another huge wedge among the people. An act of defiance has begun a wave of anti-nationalism, even among the most unsuspecting of crowds.
Fox News reported:
“Every player on the Cahokia Quarterback Club football team (8 and under) took a knee during the national anthem ahead of Sunday’s game at Little Devil’s Field in Belleville.”
This is not too surprising, being that the demonstration took place in Illinois. Illinois is one of the “big three” Democratic states, along with California and New York.
The state has continued a long line of Democratic strongholds, with the electoral college leaning left for the last seven elections, and its congressional makeup following suit.
Coach Orlando Gooden, coincidentally ,“felt like it was a good teaching moment” right before a game where he knew the national anthem was going to be played.
Fox News reported:
“The coach said he spoke to them about that and other situations that have happened in our country. He then explained why former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick started kneeling during the anthem.”
Colin Kaepernick, the former 49ers quarterback, claims he took a knee,first in a pre-season game, to give a voice to the oppressed and those who lost their lives by police brutality.
Who knows what message Coach Gooden gave to his 8-year-old audience; all with the parent’s permission. The message of kneeling during the national anthem has taken on a coat of many colors.
The Guardian reported:
“All Colin Kaepernick ever wanted was for his country to have a conversation about race.”
While The New York Times reported:
“What began as a gesture to protest police brutality and social injustice had careened into a national debate on everything but that.”
Gooden claimed “A kid asked if they could kneel for anthem and he complied”, according to Fox News. He, also, said, “What I teach my kids is love, integrity, honesty, fairness, respect, and boundaries.”
This list of admirable character traits is, shockingly, being displayed antithetical to the principles of this country; the ones that gave him the ability to freely speak those heinous words to children with no repercussions.
Gooden teaches love? The love of one group of people. He teaches fairness? What is fair about supporting someone because of their race, as opposed to true equality where race isn’t considered.
And he claims to teach respect. It is, definitely, not respect for our country that has allowed you the freedoms to form your little league.
It is not respect for all people, as the lives lost to protect our flag weren’t considered. Perhaps, it was the respect of the convicted criminals that were, unfortunately, lost to an incident with police officers.
It was suggested the lost lives of Terence Crutcher and Keith Scott were mentioned to theimpressionable young 8-year-old minds before the little league game.
These were the men that lost their lives in an altercation with police. Their media attention sparked a race conversation that is still being carried on today.
Crutcher, who was just released prior to the incident for drug trafficking, and Scott, who served time for assault with a deadly weapon (among other things), were not the innocent bystanders media made them out to be.
It isn’t just Gooden’s boys who are taking the knee during the song that is meant for quiet reflection on all this country stands for, it is many additional NFL players.
The New Yorker reported:
“At the day’s first football game, at Wembley Stadium, in London, twenty-seven players from the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Baltimore Ravens dropped down and took a knee on the field as “The Star-Spangled Banner” began to swell.”
In a grossly distasteful demonstration to the world, the US football players then stood for England’s anthem “God Save The Queen.”
Many NFL players who didn’t previously join in on the anti-nationalistic gesture began doing so after an Alabama Trump speech.
Time reported on President Trump’s words to those disrespecting our nation:
“He’s going to say, “That guy that disrespects our flag, he’s fired.”
When people like yourselves turn on television and you see those people taking the knee when they are playing our great national anthem. The only thing you could do better is if you see it, even if it’s one player, leave the stadium, I guarantee things will stop.”
Things need to stop. We need to stop blaming each other for unfortunate incidents. We need to stop killing our law enforcement officers, who risk their lives for us. We need to stop the appalling disrespect for a country that gives us more rights, freedoms, and comfort than anywhere else in the world.
Coach Gooden did not teach the up and coming generation upstanding morals and the admirable character traits he claimed. He taught them it’s okay to be disrespectful when you want someone to listen to you.
Don’t we raise our children with the belief in order to be heard; you have to give the respect you would want in return?
A positive advancement in the conversation about race won’t happen by violence, disrespect, or mockery. It will happen when those wanting change demonstrate the love they want, shown to others.
Let us know in the comments section what you think about the players taking a knee during the national anthem.