Elaine Stephen: Hear the message behind taking a knee

When the national anthem played at an August Wingnuts game, I told my 3-year-old niece to put her hand over her heart. Her left hand firmly planted, she paid rapt attention to the color guard, the flag and anthem. I looked at my dad, who served our country 25 years. I remembered my grandpa’s World War II service and my mom’s service. Being a military brat during the Cold War wasn’t easy. We didn’t sacrifice like many families did, but our nation’s defense occupied my childhood. I have to admit I teared up as I watched that flag.

I love this country and the privileges we know. No other country has the freedoms we do. The difficulty of changing the Constitution strengthens its guarantee of freedom. The document isn’t perfect and our framers, understanding that, provided ways to amend it. Our founders were wrong to exclude minorities and women from freedom’s guarantee. But since its writing, our country has amended the Constitution, expanding freedom to minorities and women. Recent events show, though, we still have work to do.

Sometimes we don’t realize it when we make mistakes. That’s how I, a white woman, feel about racial injustice: clueless. Fortunately, I have friends who point out what I’m missing and help me understand the depth and breadth of racial inequality that still exists in our country.

Sometimes wake-up calls take other forms, like football players taking a knee when the anthem plays. When it was just Colin Kaepernick, I hit snooze. I dismissed his action as petty, disrespectful to our flag. Recent events, though, truly struck a nerve. Players are kneeling as the flag rises – the flag under which both my parents and grandfather served. That flag means a lot to me. I started paying attention to this #TakeAKnee stuff. I heard people say athletes should respect the flag — they should find less offensive ways to communicate their message. I’m starting to understand minorities have tried using less-poignant ways to point out inequality. And I missed those messages. They didn’t strike close enough to home to catch my attention.

I love our freedom more than the flag representing it. I earnestly hope my freedom of expression is respected; I fervently want this for all Americans. When Americans see injustices, I want us to speak out. My parents swore to defend the Constitution, not the flag. As a proud American, it’s critical to me that freedom of expression guaranteed by our Constitution be available to all citizens. Citizens taking a knee are using our freedom of expression to point out bigger problems. I understand now. I want to hear their message.

This story was originally published October 8, 2017 at 5:39 AM with the headline "Elaine Stephen: Hear the message behind taking a knee."