US women’s soccer team wants a repeal and apology for league’s ban on anthem protests
As time ticks by, a lot of people don’t remember who came out victorious during a September match-up between soccer teams Seattle Reign and the Chicago Red Stars back in 2016. Most don’t remember that the Reign walked away with a 2-2 draw that day, not because soccer draws tend to lean on the mundane side of things, but because of something that happened before the match even started.
Megan Rapinoe, Seattle’s superstar midfielder, quietly took a knee during the national anthem in a show of solidarity with San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Her “little nod” caught the attention of those who turned a blind eye to Kaepernick’s fight, including the U.S. Soccer Federation.
“I think it’s actually pretty disgusting the way he was treated and the way that a lot of the media has covered it and made it about something that it absolutely isn’t,” Rapinoe told American Soccer Now after the match. “We need to have a more thoughtful, two-sided conversation about racial issues in this country.”
Rapinoe, who is openly gay, said she knows “what it means to look at the flag and not have it protect all of your liberties.”
“It was something small that I could do and something that I plan to keep doing in the future and hopefully spark some meaningful conversation around it. It’s important to have white people stand in support of people of color on this. We don’t need to be the leading voice, of course, but standing in support of them is something that’s really powerful.”
Months after she took a knee, U.S. Soccer implemented a policy requiring that players “stand respectfully” during the national anthem, according to Buzzfeed.
Four years later, racial injustice has reached a fever pitch and athletes are fed up and speaking out about a topic that was once smothered by leagues across the country.
And the U.S. women’s national team is ready for an apology. A very public one.
‘Issue an apology to our Black players and supporters.’
On Monday, the USWNT’s player’s association released a statement on the “anthem policy” on Twitter.
“We believe the Federation should immediately repeal the ‘Anthem Policy,’ publish a statement acknowledging the policy was wrong when it was adopted,” the tweet read. “And issue an apology to our Black players and supporters.”
The initial policy was unanimously approved in February 2017, but, according to Yahoo Sports, seven of the 12 members are no longer on the board of the federation.
Board member Steve Malik, owner of the North Carolina Courage and North Carolina FC, said that he would like the ban repealed as well.
“Being on the right side of history on this thing makes a lot of sense to me,” Malik told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “I think what’s happening in our country right now is an opportunity to really address systemic problems that have been there a long time.”
US Soccer is set to hold a special board meeting Tuesday to discuss the ban, something fans and players say is long overdue..
Athletes both unite and clash over protesting during the anthem
Years ago, Kaepernick took major heat and was blackballed from the NFL for his peaceful protest.
A renewed focus on the subject has arisen in the past couple weeks due to Black Lives Matter protesters taking to the streets, demanding change and justice in the name of George Floyd, a black man who died while in the custody of Minneapolis police.
Recently, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees expressed his thoughts on kneeling during the anthem, saying that he would “never agree with anyone disrespecting the flag,” which ignited a fire storm of criticism from his fellow athletes before he later apologized, as reported by McClatchy News.
Even NFL commissioner Roger Goodell spoke out, admitting that he was “wrong” with the way player protests were handled.
“We, the National Football League, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of black people,” Goodell said. “We, the National Football League, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest.
“We, the National Football League, believe black lives matter.”
This story was originally published June 9, 2020 at 12:34 PM with the headline "US women’s soccer team wants a repeal and apology for league’s ban on anthem protests."