Cameron Cosby
Professor Sloggie-Pierce
English 211C
25 March 2018
Take that Knee
The popularity of the NFL reached highs and lows within the media during the past year. The games are always competitive and exciting to see, but the main topic is focused on the protest by the players. Many within our communities and the media have been upset with the players that decided to use our National Anthem as a platform to protest. I truly believe that the demonstrations were brilliantly thought out. Our 1st amendment allows us to have freedom of speech. Exercising this right during the beginning of a game spoke volumes. Negative press was not necessarily bad press. Even though the message was being distorted, our players were being heard. Unfortunately, players across the league are being punished for their actions which I believe is unacceptable.
Our current President has decided to take the low road on this discussion. President Trump has refused to acknowledge that police brutality within the black community is a growing problem. I am impressed to see that millionaires would jeopardize their careers to bring attention to a growing problem. Kaepernick stated, “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. (Wyche) Many black families and friends have undergone racism in some sort through their life span. Chantal Silva stated,”black people are three times more likely to be killed by the police in United States.” (Silva) These NFL players that we continue to see kneeling or sitting doing the National Anthem are asking our government silently that we want a change.
Martin Luther King stated, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” (King) Many black families pray for this every day. This quote is important to what is occurring in the NFL today due to the treatment toward blacks by the police officers. Blacks are still being treated differently when it comes to being pulled over by the police. We continue to have young black teens being killed over false assumptions made by police officers.
Eric Reid, former player of the 49ers, explained that he noticed that police were treating black people differently when he was on social media. Reid read a scripture from the bible that states, “Faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (Reid) This is when he realized that he had to make a difference. Players across the league noticed what Reid and Kaepernick were doing.
President Donald Trump has cursed and threatened players that have chosen to exercise their freedom of speech. He has been heard repeatedly calling the players “sons of bitches” and other ridiculous names due to their protest (@realdonaldtrump). However, the Constitution of the United States says”, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press” (Constitution of the United States 1789). Trump did not make a law to bring an end to the protest. However, he is trying to overcome the constitution and bring an end to “Freedom of Speech” in the NFL by insulting the players and owners in the league. Where many presidents would try to unite, Trump has decided to divide. Controversial statements have kept him in news and speaking out against black players has kept Trump popular among his followers.
The NFL players are kneeling for their freedom, which seems to be in jeopardy every time we hear or see an individual gunned down by an officer. Colin Kaepernick explained that he did not want to stand for a flag that did not respect him or others. (Wyche) Players need to continue to kneel for their freedom. The Louisiana’s attorney general, Jeff Landry, said that “the state of Louisiana would not bring charges against two officers that shot Alton Sterling at close range while attempting to put handcuffs on him while laying on top of him on the ground.”(Patterson) Up to six shots were fired at close range.(Berlinger and Valencia)Later it was determined that Sterling was carrying a weapon (Berlinger and Valencia). Many officers have been known to plant weapons on the victims to create probable cause and to justify the shootings.
On Sunday, March 25th, Stephon Clark was standing in the backyard of his grandparents’ house when he was confronted by two police officers.(Winston) When he decided to run away, the two officers fired their weapons at him more than 20 times.(Winston) The officers claimed that they thought he had a weapon. It was later reported that he was only carrying his cell phone. This incident occurred in Sacramento, California. These incidents are not limited to one particular area of our country. (Winston) No matter where you live, just being black makes you vulnerable to being victimized by our police. It seems as if everyday there is a new story in the news of the same old content. Young, innocent men are constantly being murdered and officers are allowed to walk free. Incidents involving police shootings of black men multiplies, but public acknowledgement of the problem remains stagnant. Kaepernick is a hero within the black community. I truly believe that those who choose to ignore such a big social problem are just as bad as those who support it.
Work Cited
Berlinger, Joshua, and Nick Valencia. “Alton Sterling Shooting: Homeless Man Made 911 Call, Source Says.” CNN, Cable News Network, 8 July 2016,
King, Martin L., Jr. “I Have a Dream.” Speech. Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D. C. 28 Aug.
1963
Reid, Eric. “Eric Reid: Why Colin Kaepernick and I Decided to Take a Knee.” The New York
Times, 25 Sept. 2017
Silva, Chantal Da. “Police Shootings in the U.S. Have a Direct Link to Structural Racism in States, a Groundbreaking Study Has Found.” Newsweek, 8 Feb. 2018
@therealdonaldtrump.”Can you believe that the disrespect for our Country, our Flag, our
Anthem continues without penalty to the players. The Commissioner has lost control of
the hemorrhaging league. Players are the boss!”twitter, 24 Nov, 2017, 3:48am
Winton, Richard, et al. “Stephon Clark Shooting: How Police Opened Fire on an Unarmed
Black Man Holding a Cellphone.” Los Angeles Times, 23 Mar. 2018
Wyche, Steve. “Colin Kaepernick Explains Why He Sat during National Anthem.” NFL.com, 27
Aug. 2016