National Anthem Protests

Introduction

The singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner" has been a feature of professional sports contests in the United States since World War I, when players and fans began singing the song before the start of professional baseball games. For even longer, the national anthem—or rather a refusal to stand for it, sing the words, or face the flag during the song's performance—has been used to protest the perceived failures of the United States government. In 2016, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem, claiming that his actions were a protest against racial oppression and inequality. Kaepernick was celebrated by some and viciously maligned by others. Critics called him unintelligent, spoiled, ill-informed, and anti-American, while others, including a majority of African Americans, were either understanding of or supported his silent protest. Hundreds of other football players and some players in other sports eventually joined in the national anthem protests over the course of the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Kaepernick opted out of his contract with the 49ers to become a free agent at the end of the 2016 season, but went unsigned for all of 2017, leading to charges that he had been blackballed because of his anthem protests.

Understanding the Discussion

Black Lives Matter: US activist movement motivated by the belief that African Americans are subject to disproportionate violence by police in the United States.

First Amendment: An amendment to the US Constitution that establishes freedom of religion, speech, assembly, and the ability to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Nationalism: A sense of national belonging and devotion to the interests of one's own nation.

Oppression: Unjust abuse of power or authority over an individual or group.

Patriotism: Love for or devotion to one's country.

Protest: A statement or action expressing disapproval of something.

Racism: Belief that racial qualities make some individuals superior to other individuals or a doctrine based on a hierarchy of racial superiority.

History

"The Star-Spangled Banner" was written by US lawyer and poet Francis Scott Key after Key witnessed a British attack on Baltimore Harbor in 1814, a key battle of the War of 1812. Believing that the British Navy would overwhelm the fort, Key was moved and heartened to see the American flag flying over the embattled Fort McHenry in the "dawn's early light" and wrote a poem about the moment; he eventually had it set to the tune of the popular eighteenth-century British song "The Anacreontic Song." "The Star-Spangled Banner" was first adopted by the military before becoming one of the most popular musical tributes to American patriotism. While the national anthem is often considered an expression of American patriotism, it is also specifically associated with military patriotism and serves, for some Americans, as a representation of the sacrifices made by members of the military to protect American freedoms.

It was during World War I that "The Star Spangled Banner" started to be associated with American sports, especially baseball. At a 1918 game between the Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox, the house band unexpectedly began playing "The Star Spangled Banner." Attendance was low, due to the war, and the chorus of the song evoked a passionate response from the more than ten thousand spectators in attendance, who spontaneously began singing along. At that point, the song was not the national anthem; legislation making it the official anthem of the United States was not passed until 1931. During World War II, when attendance at baseball games fell again, with many feeling it was unpatriotic to attend games while Americans were overseas fighting in the war, a few baseball franchises decided to start playing the anthem before games. The singing of the anthem at baseball games was, in part, a marketing strategy intended to increase interest by creating the impression that baseball and supporting American sports was patriotic. The gimmick was effective and, by the end of the war, had become a ubiquitous feature of American baseball. Other sports soon followed suit.

In part because of what the national anthem has come to symbolize about patriotism and nationalism, there is also a long history of individuals using the national anthem to protest perceived failures of the government to protect American freedoms. While national anthem protests had been occurring since the nineteenth century, during the 1960s and 1970s, protests involving the flag or the national anthem became more common. In Ohio in 1970, for instance, two high school students were suspended from school when they refused to sing the anthem, and the case later came to trial. Judge Joseph P. Kinneary ruled that the school's decision to suspend the students was unconstitutional, as the students' protest was protected under First Amendment freedoms protecting freedom of speech. Kinneary's ruling further stated that the institution had no right to force individuals to engage in "symbolic patriotic ceremonies." This ruling encapsulates the legal status of national anthem protests, which are protected under laws protecting free speech.

Athletes and other celebrities sometimes choose to use their celebrity to make statements about perceived social or cultural issues. At the 1906 Olympic Games, for instance, long jumper Peter O'Connor climbed a flag pole to raise the Irish flag in protest against the British occupation of Ireland. At the 1968 Olympics, African Americans runners John Carlos and Tommie Smith raised their fists in a Black Power salute after winning gold and bronze medals, respectively. It was a polarizing moment in American sports history, as Carlos and Smith were widely criticized as anti-American and both runners were suspended by the US Olympic Team, while others celebrated them for using their celebrity to make a statement about racial inequality. In 1996, Denver Nuggets basketball player Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf refused to stand for the national anthem in protest against the treatment of Muslims. Abdul-Rauf was suspended for his protest and later expressed the belief that his political stance negatively affected his career.

While national anthem protests have been used in antiwar protests, to protest the forced conscription of soldiers, or to protest other perceived immoral actions on the part of the US government, some have argued that "The Star-Spangled Banner" has specific relevance for the issue of racial equality. The anthem was written during a time when slavery was still legal in America, and author Francis Scott Key was a slave owner who gave a well-documented speech in which he referred to African Americans as an "inferior race of people." Given the history of the anthem and of the author's stance on slavery, some activists have come to view the national anthem as a uniquely appropriate subject for protests against racial inequality.

National Anthem Protests Today

The 2016 national anthem protest controversy began in August 2016 when San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick knelt on one knee during the performance of the national anthem. A star player for the team, Kaepernick's silent protest went unnoticed for several games before journalists noticed the gesture and asked Kaepernick why he had chosen not to stand. Kaepernick responded, "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 later explained that he chose to kneel, rather than sitting, in an effort to show respect for members of the armed services while using the anthem to symbolically protest racial injustice.

Kaepernick was subjected to widespread criticism for his actions from fans and other public figures. Some expressed the belief that Kaepernick's actions were unpatriotic, while others, such as former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, expressed the belief that Kaepernick was not himself oppressed and so could not legitimately take a stand against oppression. Presidential candidate Ted Cruz tweeted that athletes "who have made millions in America's freedom" should stop insulting the flag, the nation, and its heroes. Presidential candidate Donald Trump likewise criticized Kaepernick with a tweet in which he wrote, "Maybe he should find a country that works better for him." Conservative talk show host Mark Levin insulted Kaepernick's intelligence and questioned the validity of the protest.

After Kaepernick started receiving criticism in the national press, a number of other athletes engaged in sympathetic protests to support Kaepernick and to bring attention to racial inequality and oppression. Kaepernick's protests first made national news on August 26, and within one month, more than twenty-three other athletes had joined Kaepernick in staging some type of protest during the national anthem. While some players knelt, like Kaepernick, others chose to sit and others raised a fist during the national anthem performance. In September the entire Seattle Seahawks team stood with locked arms during the anthem in a show of solidarity. In addition, media reports indicated that athletes at some colleges, universities, and high schools, had also staged protests inspired by Kaepernick's actions.

The anthem protests continued in the 2017 season, this time amplified by the opposition of newly inaugurated president Donald Trump, who waded boldly into the controversy by declaring in September 2017 that football players who protest the national anthem should be fired. In the games that followed his comments, more than two hundred NFL players sat or kneeled during the anthem in an act of defiance.

Despite the ongoing protests across the league, no team opted to hire Kaepernick in 2017 after he left his contract at the end of the 2016 season. In October 2017 he filed a grievance against NFL team owners, alleging collusion to deprive him of employment in retaliation for his political stance.

These essays and any opinions, information, or representations contained therein are the creation of the particular author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of EBSCO Information Services.

About the Author

Micah Issitt is a journalist, researcher, and independent scholar who has been writing about politics and popular culture for twenty years. He is the author of three books, on political, social, and religious subcultures.

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