By Hugo Vogel, Year 11
Many of you who are familiar with sports will know that over the course of last weekend, there was a lot of buzz around athletes kneeling during the American National Anthem at sporting events in protest of the oppression of people of color. This is why it matters.
On Friday the 21st of September, Donald Trump criticised NFL players for kneeling during the anthem saying that they should be “fired” for doing so. He used explicit language when describing the players, who were doing nothing but using their First Amendment right. The response to his outburst was a historical one in the world of sports. Last Saturday, nearly every NFL franchise owner released a statement regarding the President’s comments, heavily criticizing him and the way he handled the situation. The following day, nearly every NFL team kneeled, locked arms, or didn’t come out for the anthem in a show of unity which was unprecedented in sports. Even the players, owners and coaches who openly support Trump spoke out on how unfair his comments were.
Some people might interpret kneeling as a sign of disrespect to American men and women who died protecting their country. This is a feasible theory, but Colin Kaepernick (the african-american quarterback who started the kneeling movement) made sure to contact a former Green Beret and ask him whether taking a knee during the national anthem would be disrespectful. The Green Beret, Nate Boyer, said that he personally thinks people should stand during the anthem but that he respected Kaepernick for doing it. He also suggested kneeling instead of sitting. Kaepernick agreed and Boyer stood next to him during the anthem.
This went from a washed up quarterback kneeling in protest to a full blown national affair. But this is much more than football players being shamed by Trump. This is an attack on freedom of speech, something so vital and important in our world, and especially in this school. There is no easy solution to this but surely the President of the United States should not insult a handful of citizens for using their freedom of speech.
