October 11, 2017 at 5:31 p.m.
Kneeling shows flag no disrespect
Letters to the Editor
To the editor:
I'm writing in response to Mr. Rock A. Fuqua's letter from Oct. 2.
I feel as though Mr. Fuqua is off the mark and misguided in his response. These players are very capable of standing for two minutes, two seconds. Many have done entire games, on the sidelines, on crutches. They play many minutes at a time on the field standing. They take brutal punishment during the game and can still walk away and stand for long periods of time.
What they are doing on the sidelines, during “The Star Spangled Banner,” has nothing to do with disrespecting our flag, the country or soldiers. It is a means of making their statement. The statement many are making pertains to social injustice and racism, in the form of African Americans being shot by law enforcement officers, who are being acquitted at trial, if they go to trial. I'm not agreeing with them, nor am I condemning them.
Americans are free, as you stated. This freedom gives a person the right to make a stand and protest. You, sir, seem to be inferring that these players have no right to make their statement, their protest. Who should have the right to protest, and who shouldn't? Should it only be the white supremacists? The Nazis? The KKK? The antifa? Black Lives Matter? The pro-gun lobby? The gun control people? Who is to make this choice?
We have a situation right now, with the Las Vegas shooting, in which some don't want to talk gun control. Some say “if not now, when?” because it will not get brought up later.
It seems, as much as you wish to deny it, that these people do respect the flag and country. They believe that this is their opportunity for their voices to be heard. It is the time when people will listen to them, and pay attention. These people are speaking with a “different” voice, and it gets heard.
What would you say, if a player were to go onto the field wearing a Nazi armband? How about a KKK hood, holding a burning cross or a noose? An antifa mask? A placard? Now, that would be extremely disrespectful to America, the flag and veterans.
Why didn't people scream when Tim Tebow knelt? Was that because he was a white man, who claimed he was praying? That was not what the entire team was to be doing, so why was there no outrage? Now that Mr. Tebow is a minor league baseball player, he either doesn't kneel and pray, or no one makes it important, because he isn't the center of attention, like he was then in the NFL.
Mr. Fuqua spoke of service members being disrespected. There are many African Americans in the service. I would like to believe that these players are not making their protest to disrespect their own brothers and sisters.
Work toward common goals? Our government is setting a poor example there. We are at a period in time when there seems to only be extremes of opinions, and no agreement. What we have are people continually dividing, not mending or working on agreement. The extremes seem to be getting even more dramatic.
Kneeling during our national anthem is not such an extreme expression, when Tim Tebow knelt.
Daniel Chase
Portland
I'm writing in response to Mr. Rock A. Fuqua's letter from Oct. 2.
I feel as though Mr. Fuqua is off the mark and misguided in his response. These players are very capable of standing for two minutes, two seconds. Many have done entire games, on the sidelines, on crutches. They play many minutes at a time on the field standing. They take brutal punishment during the game and can still walk away and stand for long periods of time.
What they are doing on the sidelines, during “The Star Spangled Banner,” has nothing to do with disrespecting our flag, the country or soldiers. It is a means of making their statement. The statement many are making pertains to social injustice and racism, in the form of African Americans being shot by law enforcement officers, who are being acquitted at trial, if they go to trial. I'm not agreeing with them, nor am I condemning them.
Americans are free, as you stated. This freedom gives a person the right to make a stand and protest. You, sir, seem to be inferring that these players have no right to make their statement, their protest. Who should have the right to protest, and who shouldn't? Should it only be the white supremacists? The Nazis? The KKK? The antifa? Black Lives Matter? The pro-gun lobby? The gun control people? Who is to make this choice?
We have a situation right now, with the Las Vegas shooting, in which some don't want to talk gun control. Some say “if not now, when?” because it will not get brought up later.
It seems, as much as you wish to deny it, that these people do respect the flag and country. They believe that this is their opportunity for their voices to be heard. It is the time when people will listen to them, and pay attention. These people are speaking with a “different” voice, and it gets heard.
What would you say, if a player were to go onto the field wearing a Nazi armband? How about a KKK hood, holding a burning cross or a noose? An antifa mask? A placard? Now, that would be extremely disrespectful to America, the flag and veterans.
Why didn't people scream when Tim Tebow knelt? Was that because he was a white man, who claimed he was praying? That was not what the entire team was to be doing, so why was there no outrage? Now that Mr. Tebow is a minor league baseball player, he either doesn't kneel and pray, or no one makes it important, because he isn't the center of attention, like he was then in the NFL.
Mr. Fuqua spoke of service members being disrespected. There are many African Americans in the service. I would like to believe that these players are not making their protest to disrespect their own brothers and sisters.
Work toward common goals? Our government is setting a poor example there. We are at a period in time when there seems to only be extremes of opinions, and no agreement. What we have are people continually dividing, not mending or working on agreement. The extremes seem to be getting even more dramatic.
Kneeling during our national anthem is not such an extreme expression, when Tim Tebow knelt.
Daniel Chase
Portland
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