The following is presented as part of The Columbian’s Opinion content, which offers a point of view in order to provoke thought and debate of civic issues. Opinions represent the viewpoint of the author. Unsigned editorials represent the consensus opinion of The Columbian’s editorial board, which operates independently of the news department.
There is room for criticism. Obviously, there is room for criticism.
If you refuse to stand for the national anthem and say something such as, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” you are bound to generate a bit of backlash.
But as San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick becomes a household name for his silent protest during “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and as many other athletes echo that protest, it appears the tenor of the criticism is out of bounds. Like, back in the locker room taking a shower out of bounds.
To start with, there is the school of thought that says Kaepernick is wealthy and privileged — and therefore his protest is hypocritical. Which, to use the technical term, is balderdash.
Those who have money and a high public profile have a duty to speak up; they have a moral and intellectual imperative to use their platform to point out injustice where they believe it exists. “To whomever much is given, of him will much be required” and all that. You might have heard that one; it’s in the Parable of the Faithful Servant.
Kaepernick’s peaceful protest has generated more discussion among average Americans than a month’s worth of Black Lives Matter protests, and that doesn’t happen if Bob the Plumber decides to stay in his seat during the anthem. That doesn’t happen if columnists at midsized newspapers opine about oppression and how this nation treats people of color.
We should be grateful for Kaepernick’s decision to take a stand by sitting. We should be grateful for a nation that allows him to engage in quiet protest as a manner of raising awareness for something he believes is important. We should be grateful for a nation that invites a self-examination of who we are and who we profess to be.
Dissent, it has been said, is the highest form of patriotism (a quote often falsely attributed to Thomas Jefferson).
Make the country better
You might disagree with Kaepernick’s actions. That is your right. You might disagree with his assertion that minorities are oppressed. That also is your right.
But in the weeks since Kaeper-nick first launched his protest, the reaction has reflected this nation’s asinine insistence upon changing the subject rather than dealing with difficult questions.
We have been told that refusing to stand for the national anthem is an affront to those who have fought and died for our freedoms, as though the song and the flag are some sort of litmus test for patriotism. We have heard that police officers in the Bay Area threatened to boycott working 49ers games, as though only those who agree with us are deserving of protection. We have been told that silent protest is unpatriotic, as though patriotism is measured by the size of the blinders that prevent you from seeing this nation’s shortcomings.
But what we have heard precious little of is discussion about the foundation of Kaepernick’s protest. We have become so engulfed in the symbolism of standing or not standing for a 2-minute song that we are too busy to talk about the state of the nation or the way we treat the poor and disenfranchised.
In a way, it is reminiscent of 1968, when singer Jos? Feliciano performed the national anthem with a Latin-jazz beat before a World Series game in Detroit. Feliciano was vilified by those who saw themselves as real patriots and yet were able to ignore the fact that Detroit had been burning — literally — for two years.
The issue surrounding the national anthem is receiving much attention this weekend with the anniversary of 9/11 and with the start of the NFL season. The Seattle Seahawks, for their part, have hinted at “a powerful sign of unification and respect for the anthem.”
Regardless of what happens, one truth will remain pre-eminent: Patriotism is more about what you do to make this country better than whether or not you stand for “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
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