If anybody can give me a rational explanation as to why any black person in America should salute the flag, sing the anthem, or pledge allegiance I would love to hear it.
A black child was nearly lynched in Claremont, New Hampshire..... SIX WEEKS AGO.
White men with torches are marching through Charlottesville..... LAST WEEK
(former) SLMPD Officer Jason Stockley gets away with killing Anthony Lamar Smith, even though there is tape of him saying, "I'm gonna kill this n****r"..... FOUR WEEKS AGO FRIDAY
Patrick Harmon is shot in the back-by Salt Lake City police-August 13th. There is video of the officer who did it saying, "I'm going to kill you." That officer was cleared..... OCTOBER 5 (if you don't know about the Patrick Harmon case, you can read about it here)
And yet people are up in arms because some black football players have the guts to kneel during the playing of the anthem?
"It's disrespecting the troops/vets," they say. Well...that's bullsh*t, to put it nicely. Let's tell the truth here...the only reason football players are on the field during the anthem is because the Department of Defense PAID the NFL for it.
"It disrespects the flag," they say. More bullsh*t. Kneeling is actually one of the most respectful actions one can take. And, have you taken a look at the U.S. Flag Code? Most of the people screaming the loudest violate the Flag Code everyday.
"Why don't they protest in a different way," they say. Ah. My favorite white people response. Because, as is becoming routine, I get to use their sainted Martin Luther King Jr. against them. Repeat after me.....
"First, I must confess that over the last few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Council-er or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can't agree with your methods of direct action;" who paternalistically feels he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by the myth of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait until a "more convenient season."
Shallow understanding from people of goodwill is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection."
And now it looks like the NFL is going to bow to pressure and write a rule requiring players to stand during the anthem. As black players make up 70% of NFL rosters, I hope all of them stay in the locker room during the anthem from now on. (this is what happened pre-2009 when the DoD paid the NFL) But, barring that, I hope every black player pulls a Tommie Smith and John Carlos at the 1968 Olympics fist raise every week.
It's time for a little honesty here people. This is not about the flag or the anthem or respecting/disrespecting the troops or vets. This has always been about race
