The general argument made by Jaweed Kaleem in his work, “In the ‘land of the free,’ are you free to sit out the national anthem?”, is that it is okay and not okay to sit out for the national anthem. More specifically, Jaweed argues that Colin Kaepernick should or should not sit during the national anthem. He is suggesting that some people believe that the American flag is sacred and not standing during the national anthem is insulting it. Others believe that everyone has the freedom of speech, so anyone can do or say what they want when the action isn’t illegal. In conclusion, Jaweed’s belief is that it is both right and wrong for Colin Kaepernick or anyone to sit for the national anthem because the flag is sacred and everyone has the freedom…
Standing Up Who knew you could stand up for what you believe in by sitting down? Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, was doing exactly that when he sat down during the playing of the national anthem before a pro-football game; I agree and approve of what he did. He was protesting the different treatment of colored people and also the cops. After reading the article, ¨In the `Land of the Free,` Are You Free to Sit Out the National Anthem?¨ by Jaweed Kaleem, I learned that Colin Kaepernick is not the only one taking a stand.…
Ethan Hackney Professor Aguailar ENGL V01A October 5, 2017 ENGL V01A Midterm NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s decision to kneel during the National Anthem to protest the mistreatment of African Americans has generated a good deal of controversy: some claim that the act of kneeling is a sign of disrespect and feel that Colin is not only insulting America, but also insulting the many soldiers who have died for this country, on the other hand many believe that Kaepernick’s kneel was not only a proper form of Non-violent protest, but actually a sign of reverence rather than disrespect. More NFL players have copied Kaepernick’s example in the last year, and emotions have run high on both sides of the issue, even generating a response from President…
That is why some veterans take their own stand and kneel during the national anthem, because they know what it truly means to be brave. According to the article “Bend the knee: Whether you agree it or not, the protest is an act of patriotism” by Stan Grant from ABC news, it states, “Yet, some veterans have said that they fought precisely for the democratic freedoms - the right to protest - that all Americans, the athletes included, should enjoy. Indeed, protest lies at the very heart of the American nation.” This explains that even many veterans are saying that it is okay to protest if it is for the greater good of our nation. This disproves the argument that the opposing side claims because when we are protesting, we are not doing it to disrespect all the people who have lived and fought for our country before us, but we are doing it because these veterans that we are talking about fought for our freedom.…
In the days that followed the president issued a series of tweets reiterating his views and calling for a fan boycott of games” (The Associated Press). Donald Trump using his platform as president in this matter is inevitably creating this conception of “A Nation Divided”. This statement is forcing society to take either the side of President Donald Trump’s dislike of the protest or the side of “Sports United”. This symbolically gestures that due to Donald Trump’s superior influential platform that his declarations and positions take precedence over that of professional athletes. Although, The Associated Press presents the audience with these two colliding views they still make it evident that you should be educated on each side of the spectrum, “racial injustice and police mistreatment of African-Americans has become obscured by the narrower issue of how to act during the anthem.…
In today's culture we have seen people disrespecting our country, our military, and our flag by taking a knee during the National Anthem; thinking about those situations make me embarrassed to be affiliated with such a group of Americans. Those men and women sacrifice their lives so we can live ours and that idea ,right there, is what makes our country so beautiful and so peaceful, so why not be on our feet with our hands over our hearts reciting our anthem to show them we are thankful for their bravery? That is the least we could do since they get shipped away from their loving families to risk their lives for our freedom, which sometimes we do not…
National Anthem Protests As you go to sporting events, you hear the National Anthem being played before the athletes start their sporting event. The reason for this is to honor those who served and protect our country and for those who are still doing so. Recently, many NFL (National Football League) players have oppose to stand for the National Anthem. In 2016 Colin Kaepernick, who played football for the San Francisco 49er’s, started a protest trend to kneel for the National Anthem.…
Authors Tharoor and Mock state that they believe the flag clearly and absolutely stands for racism and hatred, while French and Jones choose the opposite stance and argue that while they understand why the flag is often misunderstood, they believe the flag is a symbol of pride. The last author, Ian Leonard, does not state his stance in the debate but rather brings…
Across the country, Americans are in heavy debate about the idea of kneeling for the national anthem. Some feel that kneeling is a form of protest, however, others feel that kneeling is a blatant disregard for authority and an overall disrespect for their country. HEADER One of the most beautiful aspects of the United States is the fact that every citizen has undeniable freedom and rights. One of the most controversial issues that are currently taking place in the United States is the issue regarding NFL and the right to kneel during the national anthem.…
Trump’s Attack on NFL Sparks Worldwide Controversy NFL players are taking a knee or locking arms during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racial oppression. Police brutality has become a huge issue in the United States because of social media coverage. These videos, which have gone viral, show police abusing the law and shooting unarmed African American men.…
What does being an American in the United States mean? To some it means serving their country, or supporting the ones who do. To others it means standing up for what they believe in. For others still it’s about freedom. For Colin Kaepernick it means expressing his feelings about being American by, not standing during the playing of the National Anthem.…
Is it unpatriotic if athletes do not stand during the national anthem in protest of their beliefs? I will use the controversy around athletic protests as an example of Geertz' theory of anthropology as interpretation. Colin Kaepernick is an American football quarterback who did not stand during the playing of the national anthem during the entire football season for 2016-17. He was released from his role as quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers in 2016. He is currently a free agent and considered one of the best quarterbacks currently in the National Football League (NFL) after taking his team to the superbowl in 2016.…
Mahatma Gandhi once said, “be the change that you wish to see in the world”. Colin Kaepernicks’ decision to kneel during the national anthem is a perfect example of this sentiment; though many have found his protest to be disrespectful, unnecessary and inconsiderate, his intent and message is anything but that. The National Anthem represents the freedom and equality Americans experience; however, with rising racial tensions many feel this no longer reflects the American experience. As can be seen, Colin Kaepernicks’ protest was appropriate because it was a stand against racism by expressing his dissatisfaction in American racial tensions in a polite and respectful way like kneeling so people who wanted to stand could and were not distracted from doing so and was patriotically shining a light on an issue on a large scale like on at a national football game. Although his protest was not received well by many, Colin Kaepernicks’ protest was a very appropriate response to race relations in America.…
According to Irving Janes (1972), groupthink occurs when a group makes an irrational decision because of group pressure fostering and the deterioration of ‘mental efficiency, reality testing, and moral judgement” (Irving, Janis, Victims of groupthink, p.9). Social influence is the effect that people have upon the beliefs or behaviors of others (Aaronson, 2004). Both groupthink and social influence theory have a factor in what we see as an ongoing reaction to the silent protest started by Colin Kaepernick in August 2016. In recent news on October 1, 2017 during a game between the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers, about 30 of the 49ers players took a knee during the national anthem.…
Football, known as soccer in the United States, is ranked as the most watched and played sport in the world. With more than 240 million people who regularly play it, the sport has grown to be the most popular in the world (FIFA). What no one acknowledges after all, is the dark side of football, which includes homophobia, corruption, and most commonly racism. Racism has been a persistent problem, especially in Europe since it “first appeared around the 1970’s when England’s black players were habitually pelted with bananas, ridiculed with monkey-type grants, and subjected to chanting for no other reason than their ethnicity” (Cashmore, and Cleland 11). Since then, there have been countless anti-racism campaigns that attempt to minimize and eventually…