Nearly a year after Colin Kaepernick first knelt as the USA national anthem played ahead of a game, his silent protest has once again become the subject of national attention – this time, because President Trump has launched a days-long tirade at players who have joined the movement.
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As the “Star-Spangled Banner” played at Soldier Field in Chicago for the noon game between the Chicago Bears and the Steelers, the Pittsburgh team’s sideline was virtually empty. Luther Strange, Trump angered many in the National Football League by calling for team owners to fire any “son of a bitch” who “disrespects our flag”. “We recognize our players’ influence”, he said in a statement to People.
During last week’s round of games, four players sat or knelt during the anthem and two raised their fists, while others stood by the protesters in support and many are predicting more protests.
Trump’s Saturday tweet doubles down on the message he delivered Friday during a political speech in Alabama in which he called on NFL owners to release players who kneel during the national anthem. In addition, the NFL commissioner, the head of the NFL Players Association and multiple NFL teams released statements in support of the league and its players. “Fire or suspend!” President Trump wrote on Twitter.
The defiant moves came in response to a series of comments made by Mr Trump over the weekend criticising players who refuse to stand for the national anthem.
Trump extended his personal grudge against Colin Kaepernick, a player who kneeled for the anthem last season to protest against racial injustice and police brutality in the USA, to the whole league this week.
“The president is saying if they want to get rid of the players, they should”, White House legislative affairs Marc Short told NBC’s Chuck Todd on Meet the Press Sunday. Dozens more players on other teams knelt at their games Sunday afternoon.
Among those taking part were National Football League players at Wembley Stadium during a UK-based match between the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Owners and executives from almost 20 sports teams – representing football, basketball and even baseball organizations – declared support for players, called for unity and emphasized freedom of speech and expression in a series of statements.
Asked to respond to Kraft’s comments, Trump said, “Look, that’s okay. he has to take his ideas and go with what he wants”. “I’m just saying they have to respect our flag, and they have to respect our country”, Trump said, per pool reports.
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Trump escalated his demands on Sunday morning by calling for fans to boycott the NFL.
