LETTER: Players are not unpatriotic
To the editor:
This letter is in regards to the opinion in last week’s Statesman where the writer accused the basketball players of being disrespectful. He alleges that they “snubbed our flag by keeping their hands at their sides or behind their backs,” and I just wanted to point out how hypocritical and na’ve these comments were.
First of all, just because a person doesn’t have their hand over their heart during the national anthem does not mean that they are disrespectful or unpatriotic. People have different outward expressions of appreciation for the country. If you turn on your TV or attend any professional/collegiate football, basketball, or baseball game in the country and watch the players, you’ll find that it is actually more common for them to put their hands behind their backs and bow their heads, than it is to actually “salute” the flag. Take the Utah Jazz, for instance. I have season tickets to the Jazz and have been down there many times this season to see them play. During the anthems, they usually stand with hands behind their backs, heads bowed and eyes closed. There is nothing disrespectful or unappreciative about this. For all you know, during the Anthem, they may be contemplating or meditating about how wonderful this country is.
On this same note, allow me to offer an analogy. Imagine a person going to church and being in the congregation when a prayer is offered. Do people fold their arms or kneel down every single time a prayer is said? Doubtfully. Does this mean that they are being disrespectful and unappreciative of the prayer? No. The outward act of folding your arms or kneeling down doesn’t accurately portray how one feels inside. Likewise, neither does the position of your hand during the national anthem. Therefore, we shouldn’t pass blame without first knowing a person’s intentions.
Secondly, it is disrespectful to portray those who don’t salute the flag as being horrible people. There are certain religions (such as Jehovah’s Witnesses) that don’t believe in pledging allegiance or saluting government icons. I don’t know whether anyone on the team is a Jehovah’s Witness, but regardless of whether they are or not, it is certainly not fair to condemn people. Not everyone believes the same things and therefore should not judge them based on subjective opinions.
Lastly, it was argued that the flag is the “symbol of our freedom” and “deliberate inaction is not only disgusting, but a slap in the face of every person who has fought and died for our freedom.” I find these claims extremely ironic. Think about it. The flag does symbolize freedom, and this includes the freedom to NOT put your hand on your heart if you don’t want to. Soldiers have died for our freedom to be able to garner our own thoughts, opinions and beliefs. Even if the players intentionally did not salute the flag, it is because of this hard-fought freedom that gives them that right. But I certainly do not believe that it was a “deliberate inaction” on the part of the USU basketball team, as was alleged.
I think that our players really do appreciate the opportunity to get a world class education and contribute to the community through athletics. Whether they make it to the pros or not is irrelevant to this discussion and says nothing about their pride in America. It is ignorance like this that sets our community back and naively perpetuates intolerance. God bless America and the freedom to act as we wish by being ourselves. Go Aggies!