I'm sure everyone has heard of or seen the recent "kneeling" protest taking place during the playing of the National Anthem prior to NFL games. Whether you watch sports or not, the actions of certain players have climbed to top media headlines, trending topics, and deep debates across the nation.
I, personally, believe there is a better way to protest and raise awareness for the oppression of minorities which could: 1. Be more constructive and applicable to the topic of discussion; 2. Use a more compromising technique to get additional people on board with the movement. Now, I am not classified as a minority by record standards, nor will I pretend to act I know what if feels like to be treated in a harmful manner due to racial bigotry. The protest by Colin Kaepernick and many other NFL athletes makes sense from an idea standpoint: send a reality check to the nation with the large blinking message 'WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS'. Do I believe it should be done by Kneeling during our National Anthem –a form of musical art which exemplifies pride for this nation and all the progress we and our ancestors have made to get us this far –absolutely not. As I said before, I believe there are other ways to protest this matter which I will save for another rambling day due to the fact there is something aside from the kneeling which really pisses me off about this entire situation. (Next paragraph)
Since when has everyone known the ins and outs of each and every individual on this planet and their way of thinking? And since when has it been morally acceptable to judge or assume stupidity in someone's way of thinking without first understanding where they are constructing their ideas from? This past week, and more so during the weekend when football games took place on September 11th (a very tragic day in United States history, for those who don't know), I witnessed slander/defamation across various social media outlets, television programs, and radio broadcasts. Some of the people laying these harsh statements (statements which included: "scumbag, worthless, disgraceful, disgusting, asshole, terrorist, etc.) have also been known to protest for causes of which they believe in and/or hold a deep care for.
Talk. About. Hypocrisy.
Now before you get all huff and puff about it: yea I know the whole freedom of speech thing, you can say what you want bla bla bla. I also know the purpose of the amendment is not to assume some guy is a douchebag just because he is kneeling down for what he/she believes in.
(Standing up...Kneeling down...get it? Anyway, back to the article.)
I will say again, I do not agree with the 'kneel down' method as a way to protest this matter. The National Anthem carries a great amount of honor and history within itself; and although many moments of our nation's history may be dark and immoral, it also shows how far we have come and how strong we are/can be as a nation together. However I do respect these athletes for actually trying to raise awareness for a cause they believe in. Do they need to rethink their method? I say yes, but then again here comes the freedom of belief topic - you make your opinion.
What doesn't need to happen, is for someone to sit behind a keyboard calling the protesting athlete(s) a selfish prick. ESPECIALLY when I can assure you a large, LARGE majority of the people writing this slander do not know these athletes on a personal level. Maybe the athletes experienced racism growing up and still do today; maybe they have a loved one directly affected by minority oppression. Who is some person behind a computer screen to sit there and call them an asshole for doing something which this nation has gotten pretty soft about in recent years: actually acting upon a movement to make a better change.
To put this in perspective, let me give you readers a current hypothetical:
1. A person stands up for the LGBTQ community by walking in a protest march to help equalize rights. - Now if someone were to go post on Facebook these individuals are faggots for marching, I'm sure there would be some uproar and disrespect.
I understand the method of protest is much more organized and on less of an "attention" scale. But the point of this article is to stop assuming you know these people. Yes, you should have your belief and your opinions about the protest and its methods; but we as a society should not be ignorant by making assumptions these athletes are merely doing this for attention, when they could in fact be sparking some positive change. If you personally go meet Colin Kaepernick (or any of the other protesting athletes), and he does in fact happen to be a douchebag, then you can update your status all you want about it. Until then watch your mouth and think back to a time when you stood up (or knelt down) for something you believed in.
