Patriotism takes many forms, Mr. President…
Growing up in Texas means growing
up with Friday night lights and Saturday afternoon concession stands, whether
you liked football or not. I was of the
latter variety, although when pushed I have always preferred the college game
to the professional one. While I have
been to many a Super Bowl get-together, I went more for the camaraderie and the
nosh than the game itself. Which is why
I never expected I would feel compelled to write in support of football
players. But here I am, and here I must…
The
not-so-recent controversy began a year ago with Colin Kaepernick sitting during
the national anthem, and then continuing to kneel in subsequent games, in
protest over the violence perpetrated against people of color by law
enforcement. It was in support of the
Black Lives Matter movement. It was an
American citizen exercising his First Amendment rights under the Constitution
of the United States of America. There
is no law that says we have to stand during the National Anthem, it merely
states that you should[1]
stand. While I’m not lawyer, I believe
if you asked most of them that the word should falls short of shall or
must. So to reiterate, there is no law
that says we have to stand during the National Anthem. It is high time that our current President
learn what his job is and then actually start doing it.
Mr.
President, I didn’t vote for you. In
fact, the majority of people in this country didn’t vote for you, which I know rankles
you like a spoiled child denied dessert.
That said, as the President, you have to represent everyone in this
county, even those of us who didn’t vote for you. Putting aside not feeling represented by you,
those of us who didn’t vote for you are wondering when you are going to start
actually being President. I don’t hold
the position. I have no desire to hold
the position. I do have an education,
though, a pretty decent one, and you are not doing your job. I’m
not even sure you know what your job is.
Respectfully (which I say in deference only to the office you hold),
it’s time for you to go back to school and read the Constitution of the United
States of America.
Stop
the soft-pedaling on the actions at a protest by those who do have every right
to express their opinion but who do not have the right to express that opinion
through violence. Stop stewing about a
women’s march in January which had a higher attendance than your
inauguration. And stop tweeting about
football players exercising their First Amendment rights. It’s not your job.
Just
to be clear, there is absolutely nothing unpatriotic about what these football
players are doing. To stand-up – literally to kneel in this case – and say “I love
this country so much I want it to live up to its full potential.” If anything, it is the most patriotic thing a
citizen of a free country can do.
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