First Call: A dilemma for some players to consider before kneeling at NFL games - TribLIVE

38 minutes ago

For “First Call” on Tuesday, I simply wanted to respond to a question I got in my email inbox from a reader.

Albert — who emailed under the pseudonym “ALB” — posed the following conundrum for NFL players who may be planning on kneeling during the national anthem to start the 2020 season.

“Given the response to Drew Brees’ comments, if the league and teams support the players’ right to kneel during the anthem, how will kneeling players react if any of their teammates choose not to kneel?

-ALB”

I’ve got no idea, Albert.

It’s a great question. And I’ve got nothing but questions to answer your question.

Brees said what he was thinking. Was assailed for it. Apologized. Apologized again. His wife apologized. Tony Dungy stepped in. And that’s still not satisfactory for some.

Sidney Crosby — likely hoping to avoid a reaction such as that — waited to say anything, despite prodding from fellow NHLer Evander Kane and incessant badgering from some professional virtue signalers in the hockey media.

Crosby was browbeaten for saying nothing. His foundation put out a statement. That wasn’t enough. So Crosby put out a statement through the team. And, even then, some weren’t satisfied.

Yeah. I read the comments section moments after it was posted. Dumb move by me.

Hence, I know exactly where that question is coming from, Albert.

What if a player stands for the anthem — because that’s what he believes in — while the rest of his team kneels?

Is that player now “the protester”?

To a degree, that’s how some interpreted what happened with Alejandro Villanueva in Chicago back in 2017, and nobody on any side seemed to be happy with how that transpired.

For those who kneel and see a standing teammate in a negative light, I’d deem that to be hypocritical.

After all, for four years all we’ve heard from defenders of Colin Kaepernick’s kneeling back in 2016 is, “IT’S NOT ABOUT THE SONG! IT’S NOT ABOUT THE FLAG! STOP MAKING IT ABOUT THE FLAG! YOU’RE HIJACKING THE MESSAGE! IT’S ABOUT POLICE BRUTALITY! NOT PATRIOTISM!”

OK. Then, if it’s not about the flag or the song, I’d hope any player … or fan … or official, who chooses to remain standing, will avoid criticism for that decision.

I’d hope any player, who chooses to stand (literally), isn’t viewed as someone who refuses to stand (figuratively) with his teammates. Particularly those of color.

Right?

Yeah. I have my doubts, too. Twitter doesn’t seem to work that way, does it? And as we all know in 2020, Twitter is the ultimate arbiter of right and wrong.

Not to mention propriety, impropriety, intent, thought, opinion, and (increasingly) governance.

So we are in quite the pickle here, aren’t we? Either everybody does what they want and affixes whatever (gasp) personal meaning they want to the anthem.

Or …

We divorce the protest over police brutality from the song, which frankly should’ve been the tactic in the first place.

That’s not a popular thing to say these days, but it underscores the previous point. If supporters of Kaepernick’s worthy message don’t want that important narrative shifted to a debate over a national symbol, then focus the protest elsewhere.

Does the protest lose its starch, then? Well, yeah, it might. An organized moment of silence, or group circle at midfield, or a simple prayer doesn’t work the same way.

A protest isn’t a protest if it’s organized and sanctioned. That doesn’t mean a planned, symbolic message is never effective. One can accomplish such a goal if done well. It’s just not a “protest” if everyone signs off on it. That’s counterintuitive.

The one thing I can tell you is that for two weeks now — as a white person — I’ve been told by a lot of people of color to listen. And one thing I’ve heard while listening is that there are a lot of black football players and fans who are angry that a debate over police brutality keeps getting shifted to a debate about a flag. Or a song. Or the military.

A problem that exists is that some people who don’t want to listen aren’t going to be convinced to open their ears just because the kneeling continues. In fact, they might jam their fingers in them and stick their tongues out for effect.

Another pregame approach to advancing that message may need to be in order, or the rancor may only get worse.

Because of the very issue Albert just raised.

So, sorry, Albert, the answer to your question is: I don’t have one.

Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via Twitter. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.

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