This article, which was first published in September of 2016, is being republished by our company.
High school football players from New Jersey knelt during the playing of the national anthem, following the example set by Colin Kaepernick, quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, and Brandon Marshall, linebacker for the Denver Broncos.
According to NBC News, the contentious gesture was performed by coaches and students at the primarily non-white Woodrow Wilson school in order to raise awareness of social and economic injustice. This move was similar to the one that Kaepernick and Marshall went through.
Initial statements made by Tigers coach Preston Brown indicated that he intended to kneel by himself in a show of dissent.
“The third verse of the national anthem, which is not typically sung, is something that I am well aware of, and I am aware that the lyrics of the song were not initially intended to include people like me,” he explained.
“No refuge could save the hireling and slave / From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,” is the first line of the third verse that he is alluding to, which is kept quiet.
” I felt it was an appropriate time to do that,” explained Brown, according to NJ.com reports. “[Because] of recent events that have occurred over the past couple of years, things that I experienced in college as an African-American student athlete in the south,” Brown explained.
Additionally, he stated, “I am of African-American descent, and I would not choose to be in any other country.” On the other hand, I can’t claim to be unaware of the fact that the things I see on a daily basis are different in a neighboring town that is only four blocks away.
When he informed the players of his choice, some of the students made the decision to join Brown. This was most likely due to the fact that the students could identify with the reasons that he mentioned.
“A lot of these kids are growing up in poverty,” Brown explained. “I grew up in hardship, and a lot of these kids. There is a significant amount of inequality in terms of both social and economic conditions. In our very own community, there are problems that need to be addressed.
The Camden City School District voiced their agreement with Brown’s remarks and lauded the students, despite the fact that they are in favor of standing for the flag.
According to Brendan Lowe, a spokesman for the school district, “We are proud of our students’ engagement with what is more broadly a very important social justice issue.” This statement was made regardless of whether the students choose to stand, kneel, or otherwise participate in the demonstration.
