Throughout his candidacy and into his time in the White House, President Donald Trump has vowed to "Make America Great
Again." Nine months into his term, however, racial tensions and division overall seem to be on the rise. In yet another tirade that has become all too familiar, he may have inadvertently succeeded in uniting at least one sector of
the American population: professional athletes.
Speaking at a campaign rally this past weekend in Huntsville, Alabama for Republican Senator Luther Strange, Trump referred to NFL players who protest during the playing of the national anthem as "sons of bitches" that should be fired. The comments were met with harsh criticism, to say the least. Almost instantaneously, social media was ablaze.
All 32 NFL teams, the NFLPA, as well as Commissioner Roger Goodell released statements denouncing Trump's comments, while preaching unity and togetherness.
As one might imagine, there were a plethora of protests league-wide this weekend. From taking a knee, locking arms, or skipping the anthem altogether, NFL players made it clear that they would not stand for an attack on their brotherhood. Robert Kraft of the New England Patriots, Daniel Snyder of the Washington Redskins, Shad Khan of the Jacksonville
Jaguars, and Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys, all of whom some made political donations to Trump, joined several other NFL owners who participated in their teams' respective protests.
While the sight of the NFL protests were powerful, I personally don't have much faith in their sustainability going
forward for a few reasons. Prior to Trump's incendiary comments, the number of anthem protests had been dwindling. The protests in week 3 were more so a sign of unity in response to being personally attacked as a whole, rather than being
against police brutality and social and racial inequality, which had been the main reason for the initial protests. With the absence of guaranteed contracts in the NFL, I just don't see too many stars willing to jeopardize their
financial futures, as sacrificial lamb Colin Kaepernick was prepared to do. The owners joining in was a nice symbolic gesture, but they really
had no choice under the circumstances. Trump put the onus on them to release players that were protesting and encouraged offended fans to walk out of games. This affected owners' number one priority: their bottom line.
Trump argued that the kneeling had nothing to do with race, and it was all about respecting the country, flag, and anthem.
Stating that race is not tied in any way to the protests, being that it is the main objective of them in the first place, caused veteran NBC Sports broadcaster Bob Costas to call Trump's comments "preposterous" on an
appearance on CNN's New
Day.
The NBA community also reacted strongly to the President's comments. The NBA has long been the more progressive of the two
leagues, which is why I have more faith in them going forward as far as enacting some type of change. They also have guaranteed contracts, which could give players more peace of mind than their NFL counterparts are afforded. Aside
from standing in unity with their NFL brethren, the NBA had their own Trump-centered controversy involving the defending champion Golden State Warriors.
Almost immediately after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals, several Warriors players had come out and stated that they would not be in favor of attending the traditional championship visit to the White House. Although the invitation was never formally extended, there had been some communication between the White House and the league. According to ESPN's Ramona Shelburne, head coach Steve Kerr said the team would meet and decide as a team. They were scheduled to do so Saturday morning, but were preempted by a Trump tweet withdrawing their invitation, citing Stephen Curry's "hesitance" as the reason. This prompted a strong reaction across the NBA, perhaps none more prominent than Cavaliers' star LeBron James who called Trump a "bum" for pulling the invite since Curry had already
repeatedly stated he had no interest in going.
Those comments were echoed by San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich who called the situation "comical." No stranger to criticizing Trump, he also touched on the crux of NFL anthem protests per Michael Lee of The Vertical:
"Obviously, race is the elephant in the room, and we all understand that. Unless it is talked about constantly, it's not going to get better. ... 'Oh, that again. They pulled the race card again. Why do we have to talk about that?' Well,
because it's uncomfortable. There has to be an uncomfortable element in the discourse for anything to change, whether it's the LGBT community or women's suffrage, race, it doesn't matter. People have to be made to feel uncomfortable, and especially white people, because we're comfortable. We still have no clue of what being born white means. And if you read some of the recent literature, you realize there really is no such thing as whiteness. We kind of made it up. That's not my original thought, but it's true.
"It's hard to sit down and decide that, yes, it's like you're at the 50-meter mark in a 100-meter dash. You've got that kind of a lead, yes, because you were born white. You have advantages that are systemically, culturally, psychologically
there. And they have been built up and cemented for hundreds of years. But many people can't look at it, it's too difficult. It can't be something that is on their plate on a daily basis. People want to hold their position, people want
the status quo, people don't want to give that up. Until it's given up, it's not going to be fixed."
Costas and Popovich seem to understand what these protests are really about. What Popovich gets that is lost on many others is the need for protests to be uncomfortable. It is that discomfort that makes them effective. How many times have we all driven past a roadside protest with people waving signs and completely forgotten their message? That's because it
wasn't effective. That's not to say protests of that nature are not important, but they do not have the proper platform to get their message across effectively in a way that will stick in peoples' minds. That's what these players are doing. They're using the platform they have as professional athletes with weekly national television exposure to take a figurative stand against oppression, racial inequality, police brutality, and injustice. They are not anti-military, anti-police, and are definitely not anti-American. They just want what we all want, and that is liberty and justice for ALL. They are American citizens exercising their constitutional rights to fix what they feel is broken in this country, if not for them, for their children as expressed by Miami Dolphins safety Michael Thomas.
Those who come out and paint them as whiny millionaires and mock the very thought of them being oppressed need only look at Michael Bennett's mistreatment by Las Vegas police last month or the racist graffiti sprayed on LeBron James' Los Angeles mansion this past June. Even if those situations had not occurred, they are using their grand platform to speak for those without a voice; those that don't have the opportunity to get their message to the masses. It isn't about them, but the communities many of them grew up in and their friends and families left behind still living in harms way. Maybe their critics are so used to just thinking and caring about themselves that they can't wrap their brains around somebody doing something for others.
It has been said before that politics divide us, and sports bring us together. All you have to do is look at a roster in any sport, and you will see people of different races, creeds, religions, and backgrounds. They are all brought together to work towards a common goal. They put their differences aside, and in the process, get to really know their teammates as people and not just who they may have perceived them to be from afar. Instead of using sports as a unifying tool, Trump is trying to use it to further the divide and pander to his base. With all the devastation caused by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, it amazes me that this is what the President chooses to concern himself with.
Great leaders do not divide, they unite. The fact Trump is able to so easily use strong language to condemn "Radical Islamic Terrorism" and call peaceful protesters "sons of bitches", but needs several attempts and a teleprompter to condemn white supremacists, neo-Nazis, and the Ku Klux Klan-only to backpedal and double down on his initial
statements and say there were "fine people" marching in Charlottesville-shows the kind of "leader" he is. As coach Kerr put it, Mr. President: You represent all of us. Don't divide us. Bring us together.
Sad.
You can follow Dino Marcelino on Twitter @DiNDiN4THEWiN
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