I love sport. I relish in the environment of teamwork and determination, as everyone bands together to reach that simple but important goal- victory (and having a good time of course). As I once again step onto the ship that will take me through the career of teaching, I also aim to become a fully qualified rugby coach. The aim is simple; teach the kids about kinship, and sticking together.
If you're a fan of that funny sport the Americans play where they run around in weird suits of armour with a elongated rugby ball (as I am), then you would have seen the player protests. With the national anthem playing, these athletes made a stand (ironic since some knelt or sat down) and showed the country, and the whole world, that they were united.
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| #TakeAKnee |
This type of protest began last year when Colin Kaepernick, Quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, chose to sit down while the anthem was played. In their final preseason game of the 2016/2017 season, Colin knelt during the anthem, and the country went mad. The reason behind his protest is simple; coloured people were being oppressed, and he would not stand for a flag that represented that oppression.
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| Simple but powerful |
Now those Americans are patriotic; they have their day when they celebrate winning their independence through the assistance of various European nations, and are proud of their heritage as a country built upon the foundation of new beginnings and democracy. The 20th century saw them emerge as the defenders of the Free World, opposing communism wherever it raised its head- with mixed results...
When 'The Star-Spangled Banner' begins to play, Americans rise in unison to pay respect to their anthem. The flag flutters in the breeze, or is unfurled across an entire playing field, perfectly adding to the patriotic fervour. These players kneeling or sitting during the anthem is seen by some as a sign of disrespect to the ideals of the country. A desecration of democracy, if you will.
Democracy allows everyone's voice to be heard, which leads to debates and people using the Internet to their advantage and trying to seem like they know what they're talking about. Like me! Yet since everyone has a say, there's one voice that is louder than everyone else's. Yep, I'm going on about The Donald... again.
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| Welcome back, Mr President |
Last Friday, Trump addressed a crowd of adoring fans and called for all the NFL players who refused to stand during the national anthem to be fired. This was a follow up to denying the Golden State Warriors (the NBA Champions) the chance to visit the White House after Steph Curry said he wouldn't go. LeBron James then called the President a 'bum' and how going to the White House 'was a great honor until [Trump] showed up'. Harsh words from the apparent GOAT.
It's easy to have a go at Donald Trump. A man so divisive and clearly unstable is the prime target for the humble Internet writers such as myself. Having written a few articles on POTUS (here's one here-
https://absosham.blogspot.co.uk/2017/08/whos-ready-for-nuclear-war.html), you can clearly see where I stand. But now that Trump has got himself involved with the sporting world, this is an issue that I take to heart.
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| Donald, the icon of the sporting world |
This is certainly not the first time that race and sport have interlinked. Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their right fists during a medal ceremony at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. Muhammad Ali refused the US Draft during the height of the Vietnam War as 'no Vietnamese ever called me a n****r'. Indeed, at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Jesse Owens won four gold medals as Adolf Hitler looked on and saw his Aryan athletes fall behind this apparent inferior man.
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| If he doesn't want to go, I wouldn't try to change his mind |
Racism is such a tense issue for the United States, and Trump has chosen his words poorly on this particular topic. He took too long to condemn the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville last month, and blamed both the anti-fascists and the white supremacists for the violence there. There were also 'very fine people' on both sides, according to the President. Yep, I'm sure those white supremacists are great role models in their local communities.
Correct me if I'm wrong but America did fight two wars over the issue of race and fascism. One tore their country asunder in the 1860s, and the other was a showdown with a system of government that threatened the basic freedoms of all who opposed it. These issues still resonate today, and tweeting won't make them go away.
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| 'very fine people' |
These players have every right to protest, and any sort of action taken against them will not go down well. Trump needs to swallow his pride and admit that he was in the wrong, but we are all fully aware that this as likely as William Shakespeare, Vincent van Gogh and Mozart coming back from the dead and joining together to form some sort of undead musical act. That would be pretty sweet though.
My point still stands; the issue of race is still topical, and when you play in such a competitive environment as the NFL then you wear your heart on your sleeve. Passion is something these guys have buckets of, and no denial of White House visits or calls for them to be fired won't mask it up. Stick to your golf courses Donald; it's likely you won't have any signal out there.
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| Ladies and gentlemen, the leader of the Free World |
Ben G xo 😁
P.S. As you may have read last week (
https://absosham.blogspot.co.uk/2017/09/boredom-is-wonderful-thing.html), I said that I may be employed in the next few weeks. I can confirm that my time in the depths of unemployment are coming to a close. I don't know how to feel.
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