The Star-Spangled Banner and the American flag are symbols of racism, but they also represent the never-ending wars and mass destruction of U.S. imperialism. When Colin Kaepernick first ‘took the knee’ during a National Football League (NFL) game last August, he was specifically protesting the racist police killings of Black people. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color…this is bigger than football and it would be selfish … to look the other way. There are bodies in the street…and people… getting away with murder.”
But Kaepernick went further: “a system that perpetually condones the killing of people, without consequence, doesn’t need to be revised, it needs to be dismantled!”
As the U.S. rulers move ever closer to world war with it’s imperialist rivals, China and Russia, we must once again remember those cries from the young Black rebels from Ferguson. “The whole damn system has to go.” In the Progressive Labor Party, that means organizing millions of workers to build a multiracial, revolutionary movement to not only ‘dismantle’ this capitalist system, but also replace it with communism, an egalitarian society that fights to eliminate racism and sexism forever.
NFL Owners Promote Racist Patriotism and Imperialism
The NFL is a huge, profit making, mega corporation run by billionaire owners. As they lie about free speech, they have conspired to ban Kaepernick from football, hiring many lesser quarterbacks. Yet, when Army and Navy ‘honor guards’ paraded during halftime ‘shows’ the NFL was paid by the Army and Navy. As Air Force jets performed aerial shows during halftimes, the NFL collected their ‘patriotism’ money from the Air Force. Free speech is not free. It’s bought and paid for.
And the NFL is perfectly suited to promote this militaristic patriotism. You start with the Star Spangled Banner, written by a pro slavery racist, and originally attacking and degrading slaves fighting for their freedom (TheRoot, 7/7). As Edward Curtin says, it “is a celebration of war, meant to stir martial emotions.  And football is the war sport par excellence, extremely violent.... In the 1960s, Brazilian television, in an effort to distinguish football (soccer) from American football, aptly termed it “military football.” (Counterpunch, 9/27).
Build a Mass
Anti-Racist Movement
As more athletes start protesting, questions arise. How to fight racism? Trump wants all kneelers fired. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers basketball superstar, called him a bum. Many cheered. But when Cleveland cops killed Tamir Rice and were acquitted, James said nothing. “I don’t have enough knowledge about it.” Some owners are trying to coopt the movement. They are ‘joining’ their players in a show of ‘unity.’ Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, a million dollar Trump supporter, exemplified this phony unity. He linked arms with the players and kneeled for a few seconds before the anthem was played, then they stood up. That’s no protest at all. Shortly after he announced that players who did not stand would not play. In the PLP we fight for a revolution and an egalitarian, communist world. We welcome people who hate Trump, as we encourage them to join us in the fight for communism. We welcome people who hate racism, but want to ‘improve our democracy,’ even though we think this ‘democracy’ is completely phony. We don’t welcome the racist, billionaire NFL owners.
There is a history of athletes fighting back. The communist Paul Robeson was a militant fighter against racism. The bosses blacklisted him and took away his passport, so he could not perform in Europe. Sprinters Tommy Lee and John Carlos raised their fists on the medal stand at the 1968 Mexico Olympics. They were vilified, sent home, thrown off the U.S. team, received death threats and had their medals taken away. Muhammad Ali famously said that “no Vietnamese ever called me a ni**er” as he refused to go fight in the Vietnam War. The Government tried to jail him. These athletes, like Karpernick, fought back and paid a price. More must take a stand until we are millions and bringing forth an egalitarian, communist world. Join us!