Protesting with... A British Bar Tune?
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| Colin Kaepernick (Right), the former quarterback of the 49ers, kneels with his teammate during the playing of The Star Spangled Banner.
Expressing views is one thing, but some pro athletes took different approaches when illustrating their frustration with events that took place in the United States. During the playing of The Star Spangled Banner, athletes such as Kaepernick or Megan Rapinoe took a kneel in hopes of conveying their views. When asked about the reasoning behind the kneel, Kaepernick stated, "I love America. I love people. That’s why I’m doing this. I want to help make America better."
Sarah Vowell, a writer who has been noted by the New York Times for her "funny querulous voice and shrewd comic delivery" has written an essay called "The Partly Cloudy Patriot" that entailed Vowell's definition of patriotism. Following the reading of this essay, we were prompted to write a paragraph mimicking her voice and use of sarcasm. The paragraph I wrote is as follows: "It is the fall of 2016. I decided to attend one of America's most treasured traditions, a day of Sunday football. I watch as thousands of attendees flood the gates of the stadium. The commotion is stopped in its tracks and tens of thousands of attendees rise to their feet when they hear the words, "and please rise for the playing of our national anthem." The first notes of our beautiful national anthem based of a British bar tune fills to stadium. What so proudly we hailed. Though one player is not hailing so proudly. The player was kneeling with his helmet in one hand, and his knee in the other. I watched as he stood up in the home of the brave. What a brave man to be playing football at such a high age." Vowell's essay, "The Partly Cloudy Patriot" gave me food for thought about how we can show love for our country. After removing a flag that was planted in her yard and removed by a war veteran, she writes, "an elderly gentleman in a VFW cap, who probably lost his best friend liberating France or something, pulled up in a big car, grabbed the flag... Then I felt dramatic and dumb" (1059). After she showed her opinions on something as little as a flag in her yard, she regretted the notion when a veteran shows up to her yard and grabs the flag. However, Kaepernick does not regret his actions, though he is not signed with team at the moment, which people imply is due to his actions on the field. While a handful of other Americans cannot express their views by kneeling at the national anthem, they go through a series of events that allow them to express their views as well. Much like Vowell's essay, people may have experienced events like the flag incident. However, kneeling during a British bar tune that gave the Star Spangled Banner its identity seems ironic. The bar tune's identity is what made me choose to write about it when given the ten minutes in class to mimic Vowell's voice.
Any citizen can express their views, but some ways of expressing those views are more powerful and draw more attention than others.
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| Megan Rapinoe, a member of the National Women's Soccer Team, kneels during the nation anthem before friendly match between Thailand. |
While the National Anthem is based off a British Bar tune, does it really matter? Just because the rhythm and the tune are the same, it doesn't mean they represent the same thing. America has made the National Anthem its own, discarding this unnamed British Bar tune. Perhaps Colin Kapaernick doesn't regret his actions because he realizes something needs to be done. Whether or not his method is correct is up for debate, but there is obviously a predicament in America regarding race relations. Great blog post James, I love the connection you made to the activity in class!
ReplyDeleteAdding on to what Nabeel is saying, the words to the Star Spangled Banner are written by Francis Scott Keys on the bombing of Fort McHenry. Even if the tune itself is ironically an old British drinking song, don't the words give a new sense of meaning? Like how Fort McHenry endured the constant bombardment, I think it could be paralleled to the people willing to stand up for freedoms like Kaepernick and Vowell. In some ways, the kneeling during the anthem is what the freedom and patriotism is all about.
ReplyDeleteI can see where you are coming from, but I found this ironic as it was a main topic of sarcasm for me to incorporate into my paragraph to imitate Vowell's voice. The lyrics do not match up to what the athlete is doing, and the bar tune aspect is to just add on to the irony.
DeleteThe point of a protest is to cause a commotion. The fact that some people to do not agree with the athlete's actions is exactly his point. He kneeled in order to get people talking about what needs to be fixed. While some people don't agree with this form of protest, it is effect for that very reason. If everyone agreed with his actions, there would be no protest and nothing would be accomplished.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the paragraph you wrote in class. I think you captured the author's style and tone by using her rhetoric devises of sarcasm and irony. Great work!