Thanks to U.S. President Donald Trump for reigniting a debate that had found its way to the backburner.
The Donald decided last Friday was a good time to channel his days from The Apprentice 鈥渞eality鈥� TV show, and claim that if he owned a professional sports team, he would fire any athlete who did not stand during the national anthem.
(I鈥檓 guessing he doesn鈥檛 understand the grievance that would be filed by the players association, how quickly he would lose the aforementioned grievance, and how much he would have to pay to actually 鈥渇ire鈥� that employee).聽
The kneeling issue has been simmering for a little more than a year, ever since quarterback Colin Kaepernick (who incidentally is a free agent) knelt during the national anthem due to what he believes is racial oppression in the U.S.
There have been a few players join him in similar protests, and it received significant media attention at first. But the kneeling wasn鈥檛 widespread, and the NFL has other issues to worry about, such as concussions and the lack of an entertaining product in the first two weeks of the season.
But you knew that when Trump ripped into the players a week ago at a rally in Alabama, there was going to be a swift response.
Teams engaged in protests. Some of them knelt during the national anthem while others linked arms. The Pittsburgh Steelers 鈥� one of the model franchises in North American professional sports 鈥� stood in the tunnel until after the anthem was finished.
In Canada, the Saskatchewan Roughriders stood for the anthem, but locked arms.
Sport has been used as an avenue for protest in the past, but it鈥檚 been rare to see a protest as widespread as this, or to see this kind of unity shown by the players.
Kaepernick wasn鈥檛 the first athlete to refuse to stand during the American national anthem, but for whatever reason, his actions struck a chord in a way that others have not in the past.
Frankly, the U.S. president should have more pressing things to worry about than the state of the NFL or whether players decide to protest in some way, shape or form. There鈥檚 the escalating situation in North Korea (which he is contributing to), the recovery in the mainland U.S. and the island of Puerto Rico following a series of hurricanes, the divisions within his own party stemming from his leadership, and the myriad of other hurdles that a president has to deal with.
The NFL shouldn鈥檛 be on his radar, other than which game he鈥檒l want to watch if he actually has time to watch a game on a Sunday. (Maybe he has yet to forgive the NFL over the demise of the United States Football League in 1986).聽
His comments are just another example of the divisive and clueless approach to leadership taken by Trump, not just since he became president eight months ago, but since he entered the race for president in 2015. He was a great businessman who enjoyed success on a lot of fronts, but as a president, he鈥檚 been a failure.
Do I agree with kneeling during a national anthem? No. I stand at attention during O Canada, and any other anthem that plays. I consider myself very fortunate to be Canadian; in fact, I believe I have won the jackpot by living in this country.
But I don鈥檛 find myself dealing with the issues that many of these protesting players have encountered聽 in the U.S.
NFL players needed to send some form of a message to Trump after his remarks. It鈥檚 no longer about just the few who have knelt during national anthems; it鈥檚 about showing solidarity for friends, teammates and peers being targeted by a man who is supposed to be the leader of the country. It鈥檚 no longer a few players kneeling against inequality; it鈥檚 a large group of players displaying unity, a concept the U.S. president seems to eschew.
We鈥檒l see if these protests continue this weekend, or if teams decide they have made their point.
As for Trump, you can be sure that he will continue to run his mouth on this issue and other issues, making a situation worse when he should be trying to build bridges.聽
