Beginning in August , some American athletes, most of whom are African Americans , have protested against systemic racism in the United States by kneeling on one knee while the U. The protests began in the National Football League NFL after San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick sat and later knelt during the anthem, before his team's preseason games of On September 24, , the NFL protests became more widespread when over players sat or knelt in reaction to Trump's call for owners to "fire" the protesting players.
It is a tradition in the United States to play " The Star-Spangled Banner ", the national anthem , before sporting events. The people of the United States are widely divided on the intended meaning of the anthem. Some believe it salutes military and police officers who have died on duty; for others, it honors the United States generally.
Kaepernick and his 49ers teammate Eric Reid said they choose to kneel in San Diego during the anthem to call attention to the issues of racial inequality and police brutality. I remember thinking our posture was like a flag flown at half-mast to mark a tragedy. My father served 25 years. When he dies, he's going to be wrapped in an American flag. But my dad is also out of the Army, and he drives trucks all over the country, and he's a black man everywhere he goes, and sometimes he has racial incidents still today.
That doesn't protect him, just because he served our country. And I think that's important. Kaepernick has said on numerous occasions that the sole purpose of kneeling during the national anthem is not to disrespect the military personnel at all, but rather that his goal is to use his social platform to bring topics regarding police brutality and oppression of people of color to light.
To me, this is much bigger than football and it would be selfish to look the other way. After Kaepernick started his campaign to create awareness about excess police brutality towards minorities, especially African-Americans, commentators have mainly shifted focus to the patriotic aspect of kneeling rather than the meaning behind it, thus weakening Kaepernick's primary goal.
