Trump, Free Speech and the Twitter Bowl.
by Justine O’Brien
This past weekend Donald Trump picked an unlikely group to target — the National Football League. More specifically, players who kneel during the National Anthem to protest racial inequality and police brutality against black people.
At a rally in Alabama this past Saturday, Trump made a point to say that the “son of a bitch” players who “disrespect” the American flag and the country itself by kneeling during the anthem should be kicked off the field and fired. Trump even went as far as saying that fans should boycott attending these games until these protests end.
“If a player wants the privilege of making millions of dollars in the NFL, or other leagues, he or she should not be allowed to disrespect… our Great American Flag (or Country) and should stand for the National Anthem. If not, YOU’RE FIRED. Find something else to do!” Trump said in a series of tweets on Saturday.
In response to these comments, nearly all of the teams playing this past Sunday, including the New England Patriots, had players protesting during the Star Spangled Banner. Many team owners, such as Terry and Kim Pegula of the Buffalo Bills, issued statements openly supporting their players and respecting their rights to protest. Some team owners, such as Arthur Blank of the Atlanta Falcons, locked arms with their players in an open display of support.
“With the exception of one player, the Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t even take the field until the anthem was over. The Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans also chose not to take the field for the national anthem”, CNN reported.
Some teams, like the Miami Dolphins, wore shirts in support of a major catalyst of this movement, Colin Kaepernick. “Taking the knee” during the National Anthem was first started by Kaepernick during his time as quarter back for the San Francisco 49ers.
With the exception of one player, the Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t even take the field until the anthem was over. The Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans also chose not to take the field for the national anthem.
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick told NFL Media in an interview back in 2016. “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder”.
Kaepernick is currently a free agent and many believe that his political protests during games are at least in part to blame. Still, many people who previously voiced opposition to Kaepernick’s tactic, including retired Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis, took the knee on Sunday in solidarity with the principles that drove Kaepernick in the first place.
The commissioner of the National Football League, Roger Goodell, also showed his support for the protesting players in a public statement.
“The NFL and our players are at our best when we help create a sense of unity in our country and our culture,” Goodell said as reported by the Charlotte Observer. “There is no better example than the amazing response from our clubs and players to the terrible natural disasters we’ve experienced over the last month. Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities.”
While many in the past have publically criticized protests in professional sports, Trump’s statements have added new fuel to the fire. These comments from Trump come mere weeks after his refusal to condemn the protestors in the Charlottesville protests. Trump’s inability to publicly denounce the “fine” people who protested against minorities in these riots made international headlines.
Trump was quick to shut down accusations that this was in fact a race related matter in a statement he made while leaving his golf club in Bedminster.
“This has nothing to do with race,” he said. “I’ve never said anything about race. This has nothing to do with race or anything else. This has to do with respect for our country, and respect for our flag.”
Many critics of Trump say that by attempting to censor these types of protests in professional sports, he is infringing on the First Amendment rights of these players by denying them their rights to free speech and peaceful assembly.
Many supporters of Trump say that kneeling during the National Anthem is an open affront to police officers and other public service workers.
Aside from the ongoing feud with the NFL, Trump butted heads with another professional athlete this weekend, Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors. Curry, the basketball superstar who helped secure a championship against the Cleveland Cavaliers this past year, expressed hesitation about accepting an invitation to visit the White House. Because of this, Trump rescinded the invitation all together.
“We believe there is nothing more American than our citizens having the right to express themselves freely on matters important to them,” the Warriors said in a statement as reported by NBC. “We’re disappointed that we did not have an opportunity during this process to share our views or have open dialogue on issues impacting our communities that we felt would be important to raise.”
Many athletes, including fellow basketball superstars LeBron James and Michael Jordan have voiced their support of Curry’s hesitation to accept the invitation in the first place. James, in a Tweet that has since gone viral, called Trump a “bum” and also said that “Going to the White House was a great honor until you showed up!”
It will be interesting to see how the saga of Trump versus American Athletics plays out. Sports Illustrated points out that Trump frequently exercises his First Amendment rights through the use of his Twitter account, making his apparent disdain for public protests somewhat ironic. Sports Illustrated also notes that Trump has no legal authoritative decision making capacity on the matter. The decisions going forward on this topic will be made by the NFL.
Although these remarks are controversial and have been hailed by many as negative and divisive, the displays of unity that came from these comments are worth taking notice of. Whether professional athletes decide to bend their knees or lock their arms or do nothing at all, it is important to respect their right to do so.
Justine O’Brien is a senior at UMass Amherst studying journalism and media literacy. In her free time she loves photography, shoes and attempting to keep plants alive.
