I’ve had enough of the uproar over NFL players
kneeling during the National Anthem. If it were going somewhere—if there were a
beneficial conclusion in sight—if anybody had anything new or different to say
about it, I might have a different perspective. I’m just tired of the endless
repetition of talking points devoid of any productive movement toward
resolution.
September 25, on Monday Night Football, the Dallas
Cowboys, their owner and their coaches, walked to the center of the field, arms
linked, and knelt for a few seconds before the anthem was played, and they were soundly booed; which suggests the
ballyhoo really may not be about disrespecting the anthem at all.
A man of color protested the ways some people of
color are being unjustly treated. The preponderance of evidence—the tone of the
bulk of social media reaction—suggests that had Mr.
Kaepernick been white, and had he been protesting taxes, the public outcry
likely would have been different.
In the first place, it’s a first amendment issue; and
there’s a credible sense in which the primary outcry comes from the same populace
that is passionate in its defense of the second amendment, as if one amendment is more important than another. Given our current
political majority, and given that the President of the United States said that
NFL players who kneel during the National Anthem should be fired[1], I think I can
build a case that our first amendment rights are more likely to be abused than
are our second amendment rights.
In the second place, taking a knee was never intended
as an act of disrespect—of the anthem, or the flag or the sacrifice of our
military personnel. Most of those who have chosen to take a knee have stated as
much. As a veteran who has served under fire, I take no offense and sense no
disrespect. In fact, I served (so I’m told) precisely to defend the rights of
those who peacefully protest. More importantly, I served to defend the rights
of those on whose behalf the NFL players are protesting.
In the third place, the magnitude of reaction against
the act of taking a knee is effectively, if not intentionally, a gross distraction
from the real issue. The motivation behind the kneeling protest is the documentable
reality that people of color (and other minorities) are treated differently than
whites are treated.
I repeat: the documentable
reality. But the slightest mention of that reality on social media garners
immediate and hostile response. Many people take even general comments about
racism very personally, as if those comments amount to accusations directed
specifically at them. I have to wonder why they think that!
I’ve seen a lot of statements that begin with, “I’m
so tired of people playing the racism card!” Well, it’s not a card, and it’s
not being “played.” It’s a reality that hurts many people! Yet, there may be no
stronger denial in the USA than the denial of racism.
Finally, the comments I hear and read build a
compelling case that the public outcry really is not about disrespect, but
about disagreement. Intolerance of disagreement, or of difference, is one of
the fastest growing and most dangerous cultural trends of our time. I guess
that’s my primary point in this blog.
What we have lost in our culture is not simply the ability
to disagree respectfully; what we have lost is any sense that disagreement can
have a positive conclusion. We have lost all sense of unity, replacing it with a
demand for uniformity—and not just any uniformity. The demand is that everyone
agree and conform with “my/our” perspective.
In the past, I have written often about the growing
obsession with “being right”—the arrogant[2] assumption
that I/we, and only I/we, are absolutely right; the custodians of absolute
truth.
Limited as we are by the clay of which we are made,
none of us humans is capable of comprehending absolute truth. Without the
humility to accept and acknowledge that my/our perspective is partial and
incomplete, and that we need each other’s insights to build consensus (rather
than inflicting one perspective) there will never be unity among humans.
Until we stop shouting, and start listening—really listening—to
each other, there will always be a need to protest.
I have wished Mr. Kaepernick had chosen a more
effective expression of protest—one less counterproductive to his own cause.
But, I have to wonder, given the animosity that is infecting more and more of
our population, whether it would have been possible for him to find any
expression of protest that would have been greeted with a less hostile
reaction. I fear that’s what we have become.
Maybe on our knees is where we all need to be.
That’s the way I see it through the flawed glass that
is my world view.
Together
in the Walk,
Jim
[1] And the owner of the Dallas
Cowboys, Jerry Jones, said he would do so, which leads me to wonder whether
such firings would be grounds for a viable lawsuit on the basis of violation of
first amendment rights.
[2] To assume absolute truth is
to assume equal status with God, which not only is arrogant; it’s blasphemous! As
I understand the doctrine of original sin, it is related to that assumption.
