Racial Inequality

In 2017 controversy struck when the NFL tried “taking a stance” and protesting the National Anthem. In this protest, many NFL players one by one knelt down while the National Anthem played at their sporting event. The National Anthem is a song for our country and symbol to represent all of the men and women who have fought in our military. This song is not played just for our entertainment, it is to honor the flag and what it stands for. The protesting was started by Colin Kaepernick, last season, when he was the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. He was the first player to take a knee during the playing of the National Anthem, now many other NFL players this season are following in his path and doing the same thing. Many players and viewers claim it is for police brutality and the injustice that is being served, while other viewers see it as entitled millionaires disrespecting the flag and the military. Everyone has different opinions on the issue, but no matter what the country needs to respect one another as humans and be united; the American Flag is a symbol of our freedom and the NFL needs to recognize the National Anthem rather than kneeling and disrespecting what it stands for.

It was upon these concepts of liberty, justice for all, and equality that became the foundation of America and its government. Many citizens claim that these ideals are still believed in and upheld today, yet the black NFL football players who kneeled during the national anthem at a game believe otherwise. According to Bretherton, the black players such as Kaepernick and Reid kneeled to “raise the question of why citizens of color, despite the promise of equality, still live (and die) as lesser Americans” (Bretheron 2). The players took a knee in order to raise awareness and bring attention to the discrimination colored citizens of America are facing today, such as police brutality. Although the players kneeled to invite the people of America to enter with them in a new, deeper kind of a relationship, where all are given mutual respect, the public misunderstood this act of courage as an act of disrespect and incivility towards America. These people, including President Trump, claim that the players are “disrespecting ‘our country, our flag [and] our national anthem” (Bretherton 1). The dilemma, thus, is that our

In August of 2016, Kaepernick began his protest during a NFL preseason game where he initially sat during the singing of the national anthem. At the time, his rebellious efforts became unnoticed, but he soon enough made headlines when someone took a photo of him sitting during the anthem. Thus a social issue was born from the public’s reaction from the photo.The negativity of the public’s reaction stemmed from the norm that it is customary that people raise their right hand over their heart while facing the flag when the Star-Spangled-Banner is playing, so if one does not follow this norm it is identified showing disrespect. Inevitably, the prediction of the people’s reaction were to be expected as they were outraged when Kaepernick broke the norm. Although, it is legal for individuals not to follow these sacrosanct protocols, citizens of the United States find this norm obligatory.Would you stand by and constantly watch the same social issues to keep reoccurring in your neighborhood? Not only that but it keeps happening to different people by the same organization? When numerous acts of police brutality occurred, Colin Kaepernick decided to protest. He could no longer stand by and do nothing; he decided to take a knee. For professional National Football League (NFL) player, Colin Kaepernick, his response was “no”. One of the last waves that came toward the end of the summer is the kneeling while the national anthem played during sporting events. When Kaepernick decided to

Kneeling during the national anthem is not just wrong it is also disrespectful to the multitudes in our country who have served or or presently serving this great nation-- the United States of America. The national anthem represents many things. One of them is the fortitude of our country’s flag. In the anthem it declares that the United States of America is “the land of the free and the home of the brave.” The flag represents the very core and essence of our nation as the only land on the continent that offers its citizens the freedoms it has at the price paid for ultimately by the brave. It is in no way oppressive nor racist. It is the theme song for every American. The intended audience of this paper is an appeal to all Americans. The quarterback of the 49ers football team, Colin Kaepernick, first began a protest to draw attention to a series of incidents against African Americans by remaining seated during the national anthem, “the Star Spangled Banner.” After the great stir Kaepernick caused in the media during September 2016, Kaepernick switched up his protest by taking a knee as a nod or gesture of showing more respect to current and former military after receiving an in-depth letter from Nate Boyer a former NFL player and US military veteran. Boyer served our country as a Green Beret. Over a decade ago, Boyer witnessed genocide while working in Sudan. He met numerous African men who were smitten with America and longed to have the

Ever since September of last year, the NFL National Anthem Protest has been one of the most controversial topics across social-media, alongside with other protests against police brutality. Many have criticized for such an action for being disrespectful to the National Anthem and Flag. Those, who have supported it, claim to protest against the nationwide police brutalities against the Black people. Looking back to the history of the United States, such sports protests are not a unique incident. During 1968 Olympic game, which are hold in Mexico City, African American Athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised their black-gloved fists to speak for black civil rights. Yet, back then both the U.S. government and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) did not show support for such an action, though today the IOC claimed that the black American athletes has made names for themselves for doing such protests.

There are approximately 7 billion people in this world. Each person has a unique combination of traits such as skin tone, face shape, body type, eye color, hair color, and other characteristics. These traits vary due to genetics, environmental factors, and much more. An individual 's race is defined by their physical characteristics and how they differ among others. Race is not defined by the way an individual behaves or portrays themselfes; it is based strictly off of their physical traits. Since America was founded, race has played a significant role in the relations of the citizens in this country. For decades, different races have been stereotyped and been prejudice towards one another, without realizing how invalid their judgements are. Specifically, African Americans have been discriminated by caucasians in America since it’s founding. It began by the enslaving of African Americans, and today, the discrimination and inequality is more hidden in society. Although America has made significant progress in overcoming racial inequality in the country, many African Americans are still being subject to hardships that Caucasian Americans do not face, especially in regards to the justice system.

The American flag represents this so-called notion of equality and patriotism, even though it was used alongside with the pledge of allegiance to capitalize on the people’s love of the country. The current controversy is that protest at NFL games is not only disrespectful to the country, but is also a disrespect to our armed forces who fought for our constitutional rights, this paper is simply an observation piece that will discuss the various arguments surrounding the NFL protest and will explore people’s current feelings toward the silent protest.

Since America’s beginning, race based barriers have mired the fulfillment of our shared principles and many of these barriers still persist today. The institutionalized inequalities are detrimental on an individual basis as well a societal basis. Racism does not only affect the individuals that are being oppressed but also how society functions as a whole. Racial inequalities have manifested in American society in ways that underlies a wide range of societal domains such as housing patterns, educational opportunities, healthcare inequality, and incarceration rates. Current events and experiences demonstrate moreover that racial inequality is still adamant in the American culture. Long after slavery, the Jim Crow Era, and the civil rights movement, racial inequality has taken distinctive forms which affect many people within a racially oppressed group. Racial segregation at large is embedded within a structural matrix that not only permeates in the American culture but in our private and public institutions. Disparities in the criminal justice system and housing patterns remain a key barrier to racial equality in America. In order to eradicate racial inequality, there needs to be policy solutions that place fundamental changes to a system with profound historical origins, one that structurally disadvantages minority groups.

Football players in the NFL are kneeling during the playing of the National Anthem to protest racial discrimination and police brutality; this can be stopped by reducing the football player’s pay, make kneeling during the National Anthem illegal, or try to end racial discrimination and police brutality in America. This protest was started by a quarterback from the San Francisco 49ers named Colin Kaepernick who said that he refused to honor a song or “show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” (McLaughlin and Simon) Even though this is a peaceful protest, it is still unjust and very disrespectful. Not only is it disrespectful to the American Flag, it is highly disrespectful to the American troops that fought for this country.

Johnson, H. B. (2014). The American dream and the power of wealth: Choosing schools and inheriting inequality in the land of opportunity. Routledge.

Recently, there has been much debate regarding the national anthem at professional football games. Players, most of them African-Americans, have been kneeling during the national anthem in protest of the police brutality and discrimination against people of color that has been rising in the United States. Some believe that this gesture is disrespectful to the United States entirely. Eugene Volokh, a law professor from UCLA School of Law, addresses this belief as well as the players’ argument. His audience for his article is white Americans with an income of about $50,000- $70,000. These people may also have been military personnel or have been in position that does a service for the country. The current service men and women are targeted as well. This audience may not fully understand the reasons behind the protest, since they are not the primary encounters of the issue. In this essay, I will be addressing this audience in order to explain that it not in the NFL players’ intentions to disrespect the service men and women.

September 14, 1814, was the day a 35 year old lawyer penned a short poem overlooking Fort McHenry after a night of British bombardment. The man was Francis Scott Key and his poem or song is now known as “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Now over 200 years later, a majority of the American population sees this song as a symbol of American liberty and freedom. However, not all agree. Recently, NFL players have begun to kneel, as a means of protest, during the national anthem played before every game. Consequently, this has caused people like Matt Server to speak out and voice their opinions. In “COUNTERPOINT: Kneeling during the national anthem is the wrong way to protest,” Server communicates to his audience that kneeling during the national anthem is the wrong thing to do. Server’s claim is accurate because of the American perception of the national anthem and the ineffectivity of the protests.

Studies show that police are more likely to pull over and frisk blacks or Latinos than whites. In New York City, 80% of the stops made were blacks and Latinos, and 85% of those people were frisked, compared to a mere 8% of white people stopped (11 Facts about Racial Discrimination). America is known as the land of opportunity. Immigrants and people come from far and wide seeking success and achieving their dream in this land. There is a reason for that and throughout history this reason hasn’t changed. America is a melting pot. The most diverse country in the world. We have Asians, African Americans, Chinese, Indians and much more all living together as one. You go into any big business, law firm or

The author, Sean Gregory, in “The Perilous Fight,” talks about the political issue that has been going on for the past year, the issue started when a professional football player from the San Francisco 49ers team, also known as  Colin Kaepernick, kneeled down when the National anthem for the United States of America was played at the beginning of a game. Kaepernick’s justification for this, was that this was his way of protesting unfair treatment of individuals because of racial characteristics. Since racism, discrimination, and gender inequalities have been going on for centuries, I agree on the matter of sports players being able to  kneel down when the anthem, “Star spangled Banner,” is being played because these people are trying to stand up for what they believe is right, and they should be allowed to protest because it is serving as a peaceful way to protest for people who are being unjustly treated. Racism and discrimination often leads to these individuals who are suffering to be judged, killed, and many other harsh things that should not be taking place in the “land of the free.” We as Americans are given so many great things, and people think about the United States they usually think of  freedom, pursuit of happiness, and the rights of being a U.S. citizen, but how can we exercise those given rights properly, when t the government does not let us by putting limitations and restrictions on how we use our rights?  When it's

What is racial and ethnic inequality? To understand racial and ethnic inequality you must understand what is considered race and what is considered ethnicity. According to our textbook, “Race can be defined as a group or population that shares a set of genetic characteristics and physical features” meanwhile ethnic groups “are set off to some degree from other groups by displaying a unique set of cultural traits, such as their language, religion, or diet” (Leon-Guerrero). When others are treated unjustly, whether it is in the workplace, school, community, public facilities, etc., due to their race or ethnic group then that is racial and ethnic inequality. One big factor or cause of this inequality is racism. Racism is “the belief in the inferiority of certain racial or ethnic groups, often accompanied by discrimination” (Leon-Guerrero). People believe that the color of a person’s skin or certain features of that person make them better than those who have a different color of skin or set of physical features. They believe that their language and religion is the correct and best meanwhile the rest are seen as inferior. Those same people think that because of their skin tone or language, they should have more privileges and rights than those who are different from them. Most of the time, those people are not part of the minority group and think they are better than those in minority