Sunday, president Donald Trump called for fans to boycott NFL games until players stop “disrespecting our Flag & Country“. This is the latest salvo in what has become a fierce battle over national anthem protests which will be front and center in NFL games on Sunday. Friday, Trump used a support speech as a vehicle to attack the NFL and many of its players over protests taking place during playing of the national anthem. The reaction has been swift and defiant and following the lead of the NFLPA, many NFL clubs have issued statements in support of their guys’ right to protest. The Dallas Cowboys have not been one of those clubs.
The oppressive sentiment players should “stick to sports” instead of weighing in on political matters which affect them and their families has now been turned on its ear.
While much of the national attention has been focused on fans boycotting games for the reason Trump now publicly supports, there has been an underreported amount of fans boycotting because they see the first recent player to make such stand be blackballed and not allowed back in the league.
Trump called out players who, following the lead of Colin Kaepernick, have chosen to silently protest the national anthem to bring attention to the unfair treatment of Black Americans by the police and legal system. This is being done around the league, via many different methods, including kneeling, sitting or raising a fist while the anthem is sung or played. The president called for NFL owners to fire players who engaged in such actions.
“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, ‘get that son of a [expletive] off the field right now. He is fired. He’s fired!'”
Trump isn’t calling for NFL owners to fire players over conduct that is hurting their business. That’s the common rebuttal used in support of why team’s shouldn’t hire Kaepernick despite him clearly having NFL talent. Those fans believe any NFL team has a right not to bring on board a player that could hurt their bottom line if it causes fans to stop spending money. Trump is calling them to be fired over exercising their constitutional rights and the freedoms the flag is seen as a symbol of.
“That’s a total disrespect of our heritage. That’s a total disrespect of everything we that stand for. OK? Everything that we stand for. And I know we have freedoms and we have freedom of choice and many, many different freedoms, but you know what? It’s still totally disrespectful.”
Some argue silent political protests and objection to inappropriate treatment of citizens by government officials are the things the flag and the anthem are supposed to represent, thus causing a fissure in the connection of the protests being labeled as un-American.
ohn David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell called Trump’s statements “divisive“.
Earlier in the week it was reported that a group of players lead by Seattle’s Michael Bennett and Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins had presented a request to the league to support the players publicly and financially in trying to better organize their efforts to impact change.
On Saturday, the first MLB baseball player knelt in a response to Trump’s statements, Oakland Athletics rookie catcher Bruce Maxwell.
Prior to Sunday’s salvo, several NFL club owners, coaches and players responded to Trump’s attacks and come out in support of the players’ rights to protest a cause they believe in.
The Seattle Seahawks, Philadelphia Eagles, and even New England Patriots chairman Bob Kraft, a noted Trump supporter, are among several teams who have all made statements of varying level of support for the roles the players are taking on to support change.
America’s Team, however, has remained silent.
Coach Jason Garrett said he had no plans to address Trump’s statements, via the Fort-Worth Star Telegram. Players were very guarded in their response, though linebackers Sean Lee and Jaylon Smith did say they disagreed.
“We have an approach that we believe in,” Garrett said. “I have no real comment beyond that.”
No Cowboys player has protested the anthem to date and Garrett expects none will in light of Trump’s comments.
Cowboys linebackers Sean Lee and Jaylon Smith said they disagreed with Trump’s comments, although didn’t expand much after that.
“I just heard the comments. I don’t agree with the comments,” Lee said. “I love my teammates like brothers. To be honest, that’s all I’m going to say on it.”
Added Smith: “I don’t agree with his comments, but I love my team. Really no other comment than that. I mean, I don’t agree with it, but …”
Owner Jerry Jones has yet to issue any sort of public statement on the recent happenings. Prior to Trump’s call for firings and boycotts, Jones had previously stated he felt standing for the anthem was important.
“I just feel so strongly that the act of recognizing the flag is a salute to our country and all of the people that have sacrificed so that we can have the liberties we have,” Jones said on 105.3 The Fan’s Shan and RJ show [KRLD-FM]. “I feel very strongly that everyone should save that moment for the recognition of the flag in a positive way, so I like the way the Cowboys do it.”
