My Facebook response in a discussion about if kneeling disrespects the flat
Surprisingly, the person a couple of us were debating really liked this response:
I wouldn't say they are protesting the Anthem directly but making a statement that the state is treating different races differently. If you went to a friends house for dinner and they had another friend there and they made you take your shoes off but not the other friend, offered the other friend dessert but not you, laughed at the other friends jokes but frowned at your jokes. How would that make you feel in their house? So think of the US Gov as a house where we all live and things like the Anthem are a symbol of this house. By kneeling peacefully they are making the statement that they feel like they are a second class citizen under the flag. That the "current" Gov. that the flag represents isn't treating them fairly. Our country is never stagnant, it's fluid and needs to constantly be watched. As Jessie Venture said, respect for the Gov. is earned. The founders flat out said if the Gov. gets out of line the citizens have a duty to put it back in line. That keeping the Gov. doing the right thing through protest is one of the most patriotic things one can do. Under the Constitution, protest to an un-just Gov. is considered the holy grail of patriotism.
= new reply since forum marked as read
