Colin Kaepernick’s protest against social injustice is being heard loud and clear by young athletes across the country and a host of high school football players have emulated the San Francisco quarterback in recent weeks by kneeling during the national anthem before their own games.
That’s where the issue gets complicated.
In football-crazy states such as New Jersey, Alabama and Massachusetts, some players have faced suspension and others have reported harassment or even threats over their stance.
Junior quarterback Michael Oppong at Doherty Memorial High School in Worcester, Massachusetts, said on Twitter that he was told he would be suspended for one game after announcing he would kneel during the anthem before a recent game. It was a decision district officials quickly reversed .
“(Oppong) did not violate any school rule when he peacefully and silently protested during the national anthem,” Worcester Superintendent Maureen Binienda said in a statement. “He exercised his constitutional rights without disturbing the school assembly and he is not being disciplined in any way by his actions.”
High school players aren’t the only ones following Kaepernick’s lead.
Preston Brown, football coach at Woodrow Wilson High School in Camden, took a knee during the anthem before his first game of the season. Brown said he didn’t ask his team to join him ahead of time, but all but two of his players did so. Afterward, Brown said that he wanted to call attention to social injustices and economic disparities.
“I grew up in poverty, a lot of these kids are growing up in poverty,” Brown said. “There’s a lot of social injustices and economic disparities. There’s issues right here in our own community.”
It’s a message that resonates across Camden, a predominantly African-American community and one of New Jersey’s poorest. Brown’s bosses with the school district expressed support for the flag as well as the right for Brown and his players to kneel, calling it “a personal issue.”
In Rockford, Illinois, some football players at Auburn High took a knee during the anthem and the school saw it as a teachable moment. Athletic director Mat Parker said coaches and players would discuss the protest “in what we hope will be a meaningful dialogue.”
“The student athletes said they wanted to create more social awareness of racial injustice in America,“ coach Dan Appino said. ”They made it clear that they did not intend to disrespect our military; rather, they wanted to embrace the freedom of expression and other constitutional rights that our military fought so hard to preserve. This movement is sweeping the nation as a peaceful form of protest. I am not happy that football is being used as the platform for this protest, but I respect the passion our kids feel about this topic.”
