Watching the NFL

Watching the NFL

I am a Bengals fan and I have been since 1968. That’s what you get for growing up in Cincinnati. As a Bengals fan I am aware that there will be many seasons when I will be “freed” from my obligation to watch the weekly game. Some years they are just that bad.  But today I am watching the NFL, and not just the two loss Bengals versus the two loss Packers. No, today I am even watching the two loss Colts versus the two loss, dare I say it, Browns.

1968 was not just the beginning of the Bengals. It was also the year of the Mexico City Olympics, the year when two of my track heroes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, made a stand against racism in the United States. After scoring the gold and silver medals in the 200 meter dash (my favorite race) they raised gloved left fists as the Star Spangled Banner was played.

1968 was the year of the death of Martin Luther King and Bobby Kennedy, the year of race riots in many cities in America, and the year when our nation was torn apart about Vietnam. Tommie Smith and John Carlos represented the best of American track athletes, and they knew the price they would pay for their actions. The American Olympic Committee, led by the infamous Avery Brundage, dismissed them from the team, with the 4×100 and 4×400 relays to go.

Smith and Carlos raised their fists and American and world awareness of the lack of civil rights in America, and ended their careers in track and field. Colin Kaepernick did the same. He took up the challenge of an America whose President cannot distinguish between legitimate protest and white supremacy and who is willing to use the latent racism of our nation to advance his own political cause. Kaepernick figured this out last year, sooner than most, and is paying the ultimate price of NFL exile for his action.

I was not a believer in the Colin Kaepernick, taking a knee during the National Anthem. I reflected that here was a man making millions, using the Anthem as a stage for his protest. I looked for a more “appropriate” way. But Kapernick knew early what we all have found out later: that racism is still an inherent part of America, whether we recognize it or not. Kaepernick was right – though it may be uncomfortable for the rest of America to see it.

And while Avery Brundage used his authority to “put down” the revolt of protest, the NFL (amazingly) has recognized another American value: the right to your own opinion, and the right to express it. Today the NFL (and many other professional sports) are showing solidarity with Kaepernick, whether they are taking a knee at the Anthem or not. Today I watched the Browns link arms, kneeling or standing, to demonstrate that they are one as a team, black or white. So did the Colts, and the Ravens in London as well.

And the President, rather than recognizing that America is still flawed and that the First Amendment allows and encourages this respectful action, instead uses his “bully pulpit” to call them “son of bitches” and demand their firing. He has raised the level of their protest, a protest that recognized early the internal racism that has become more and more evident in our nation.

Trump has called on Americans to “boycott” the NFL until the protests stop. So I will watch my Bengals – bad or good. I’ll even watch the Browns – and if I must, the Steelers. I will stand for what is good in America, even if it means kneeling.

Author: Marty Dahlman

I'm Marty Dahlman. After forty years of teaching and coaching track and cross country, I've finally retired!!! I've also spent a lot of time in politics, working campaigns from local school elections to Presidential campaigns. View all posts by Marty Dahlman