National Anthem Protest

The debate about kneeling or sitting in protest during the playing of the U.S. national anthem (“The Star-Spangled Banner”) was ignited by NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick in 2016 and escalated to become a nationally divisive issue. (See the related ProCon feature: “Is the U.S. national anthem racist?”)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick first refused to stand during “The Star-Spangled Banner” on Aug. 26, 2016, to protest racial injustice and police brutality in the United States. Since that time, many other NFL players, high school athletes, and professional athletes in other sports have refused to stand for the national anthem. These protests have generated controversy and sparked a public conversation about the protesters’ messages and how they’ve chosen to deliver them. [7][8][9]

The 2017 NFL pre-season began with Black players from the Seattle Seahawks, Oakland Raiders, and Philadelphia Eagles kneeling or sitting during the anthem with support of white teammates. On Aug. 21, 2017, twelve Cleveland Browns players knelt in a prayer circle during the national anthem with at least four other players standing with hands on the kneeling players’ shoulders in solidarity, the largest group of players to take a knee during the anthem to date. [20][21]

Jabrill Peppers, a rookie safety for the Browns, said of the protest, “There’s a lot of racial and social injustices in the world that are going on right now. We just decided to take a knee and pray for the people who have been affected and just pray for the world in general…. We were not trying to disrespect the flag or be a distraction to the team, but as men we thought we had the right to stand up for what we believed in, and we demonstrated that.” [21]

Seth DeValve, a tight end for the Browns and the first white NFL player to kneel for the anthem, stated, “The United States is the greatest country in the world. And it is because it provides opportunities to its citizens that no other country does. The issue is that it doesn’t provide equal opportunity to everybody, and I wanted to support my African-American teammates today who wanted to take a knee. We wanted to draw attention to the fact that there’s things in this country that still need to change.” [20]

However, some Cleveland Browns fans expressed their dissatisfaction on the team’s Facebook page. One commenter posted, “Pray before or pray after. Taking a knee during the National Anthem these days screams disrespect for our Flag, Our Country and our troops. My son and the entire armed forces deserve better than that.”[22]

On Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, President Donald Trump stated his opposition to NFL players kneeling during the anthem: “Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He’s fired. He’s fired!” The statement set off a firestorm on both sides of the debate. Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner, said of Trump’s comments, “Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities.” [23]

The controversy continued over the weekend as the president continued to tweet about the issue and others contributed opinions for and against kneeling during the anthem. On Sunday, Sept. 24, in London before the first NFL game played after Trump’s comments, at least two dozen players from the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars knelt during the American national anthem, while other players, coaches, and staff locked arms, including Shad Khan, who is the only Pakistani-American Muslim NFL team owner. Throughout the day, players, coaches, owners, and staff from other teams (except from the Carolina Panthers) kneeled or linked arms. The Pittsburgh Steelers chose to remain in the locker room during the anthem, though offensive tackle and Army Ranger veteran Alejandro Villanueva stood at the entrance to the field alone, for which he later apologized. Both the Seattle Seahawks and the Tennessee Titans stayed in their locker rooms before their games, leaving the field mostly empty during the anthem. The Seahawks stated, “As a team, we have decided we will not participate in the national anthem. We will not stand for the injustice that has plagued people of color in this country. Out of love for our country and in honor of the sacrifices made on our behalf, we unite to oppose those that would deny our most basic freedoms.”[24][25][27]

The controversy jumped to other sports as every player on WNBA’s Indiana Fever knelt on Friday, Sept. 22 (though WNBA players had been kneeling for months); Oakland A’s catcher Bruce Maxwell kneeled on Saturday becoming the first MLB player to do so; and Joel Ward of the NHL’s San Jose Sharks said he would not rule out kneeling. USA soccer’s Megan Rapinoe knelt during the anthem in 2016, prompting the US Soccer Federation to issue Policy 604-1, ordering all players to stand during the anthem. [28][29][30][31][35]

The country was still debating the issue well into the week, with President Trump tweeting on Sept. 26: “The NFL has all sort of rules and regulations. The only way out for them is to set a rule that you can’t kneel during our National Anthem!” [26]

On May 23, 2018, the NFL announced that all 32 team owners agreed that all players and staff on the field shall “stand and show respect for the flag and the Anthem” or face “appropriate discipline.” However, players were no longer required to be on the field during the anthem and could wait off field or in the locker room. The new rules were adopted without input from the players’ union. On July 20, 2018, the NFL and the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) issued a joint statement putting the anthem policy on hold until the two organizations could come to an agreement.[32][33][34] 

During the nationwide Black Lives Matter protests following the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, official league positions on kneeling began to change. On June 5, 2020, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stated, “We, the National Football League, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of black people. We, the National Football League, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all players to speak out and peacefully protest.” [39]

Before the June 7, 2020, race, NASCAR lifted the guidelines that all team members must stand during the anthem, allowing NASCAR official and Army veteran Kirk Price to kneel during the anthem. [40]

On June 10, 2020, the U.S. Soccer Federation rescinded the league’s requirement that players stand during the anthem amid the Black Lives Matter protests following the death of George Floyd. The US Soccer Federation stated, “It has become clear that this policy was wrong and detracted from the important message of Black Lives Matter.”[35]

In the wake of the 2020 killing of George Floyd and the protests that followed, 52% of Americans stated it was “OK for NFL players to kneel during the National Anthem to protest the police killing of African Americans.” [41]

While the debate largely quieted after the summer of 2020, there was a brief resurgence of athletes displaying political gestures on Olympic podiums in Tokyo in 2021 and Beijing in 2022. Additionally, on Nov. 29, 2024, three Colorado State University (CSU) women’s volleyball players knelt during the national anthem before a tournament game against San Diego State University. There had been much debate throughout the season about a transgender player on the San Jose State University women’s volleyball team, and many observers tied the protest to that debate, but according to CSU coach Emily Kohan, the players’ protest was connected to the Black Lives Matter movement.

So, is kneeling during the national anthem an appropriate form of protest? Explore the debate below.

Discussion Questions

1. Should professional athletes be allowed to kneel during the national anthem in protest? Why or why not?
2. Should student athletes be allowed to kneel during the national anthem in protest? Why or why not?
3. What forms of protest are acceptable in which venues? Which are not acceptable? Explain your answers.