Standing for the National Anthem

There is a phenomenon in our country, which I am totally against, in which black, professional athletes are refusing to stand for the national anthem.  They are doing it supposedly to protest against the unfair treatment of black people at the hands of white police officers.  I have been trying to stay out of this topic for many reasons, but this past weekend, I saw something that made me want to say something.

My wife and I were at the Highland Village Balloon Festival, and we had gone out in the evening to watch the balloon glow.  We were standing behind a quite large Indian group that consisted of several families from little children to older grandparents.  The older grandparents were all sitting in fold-out chairs, while their children and grandchildren were sitting on blankets.  Before the balloon glow, they played the national anthem.  Everyone slowly rose and faced the American flag on the building across from us…including every single one of those Indian people.  It touched me that they showed such respect for a flag, a song, and an ideal that was not their own.  That they honored a country that was not their own.

When I put this in the context of what is happening in this country, it just makes me sicker.  I am not a proponent for social injustice or unfair treatment.  I do not condone treating people violently or inhumanely, regardless of the color of their skin.  But I also do not condone disrespecting this country, its fundamentals and principles, or the freedoms that we enjoy.  I do not believe that disrespecting the national anthem or this country will bring awareness to social injustice.  It will put the spotlight on that particular person, but not on the issue.  The cause is not newsworthy, but the outrage at the act is. 

But I also do not believe that racial tensions in this country are caused by the accused, but by the accusers.  I'm sure you could (any many black people do) make the argument that racism exists in this country.  But the funniest part of that statement is that racism apparently only exists against black people.  Black people are NEVER racist against white people.  Black people NEVER get special treatment that is not equally given to white people.  Are you kidding me?!

* Do we have scholarships solely for white people?  I implore you to even try doing this, and see how many black people come out of the woodwork to protest about the unfairness of it.  But it's okay the other way.
* Do we have an entire month devoted to the history of white people, or anyone else other than black people for that matter?  But February is completely devoted to black history month.  Again, just try to do this for other races and ethnic groups and see what happens.
* Do we have an ESPN sports column devoted to telling the stories of white athletes?  That's The Undefeated, in case you’re wondering.  That's right, only stories about black athletes and how they're changing sports for the better.
* Was "affirmative action" equal and fair to everyone, or just black people?  Well, I guess the answer to that question is seen in the fact that they had to revoke it because it was causing "reverse discrimination."

The division of race is constantly thrown in our faces and kept alive by people whose words suggest that they are supposedly seeking to remove it.  But really it's a double standard.  Racism is good, as long as it benefits black people, but bad if it benefits anyone else.  We will never have racial equality in this country as long as people keep being reminded that we have racial differences.

I think the only true path to racial equality is racial amnesia.  We need to stop thinking and looking at people by the color of their skin or the culture they come from.  We need to start seeing people as people.  There is only one race…the human race…and until we all believe that, there is no hope for this country.  If these athletes were protesting the unfair treatment of people, then I’d support them wholeheartedly.  But the moment you bring race into it, you’ve lost me.