Commentary and Criticism about the National Education Association
We have absolutely no affiliation with the National Education Association and do not represent its views in any way, shape or form.
I had been following the Trump/NFL story with low to moderate interest (I don’t really care much for professional sports) until I read NEA President Lily Eskelson Garcia’s latest “blackboard” entry from September 24, 2017 – “Silent protest is a powerful lesson in civics and in our Constitution”.
Yes, Lily Eskelson, we all agree that no one should be forced to salute or pledge allegiance to the flag and it all goes back to a basic grade school civics lesson on the Constitution. Blah, blah, blah, etc., etc. But are these highly paid football players really going out on a limb by making this type of protest? Are they really making a statement concerning the Constitution as Eskelson implies? Are they really true heroes standing up for racial justice and all of the good stuff? No, not really. They are not risking anything by acting in this manner. They will still get paid their million dollar contracts all the while being able to tell everyone how they “took a stand” for what is right. What bullshit - and you fell for it Lily Eskelson because you are too tied up in your left-leaning political view of the world. Do you want to know the story of an athlete who really stood up for a real cause at the expense of his freedom? Consider the fate of Cassius Clay aka Mohammad Ali - the famous boxer. In 1967 he was convicted of draft evasion because he refused to serve in the US military during the Vietnam War. His boxing license was suspended; he was stripped of his title, and he eventually served time. See this Los Angeles Time Archive article for more details about Ali and his fight with the justice system. Silent protest, like we saw at various NFL games is a powerful lesson in civics and our Constitution? Really, Lily Eskelson? A safe and easy silent protest is what it means to stand up for something that you believe in? It is so easy to take the side of Colin Kaepernick. But if you had been a teacher in the late ‘60s early ‘70s, would you have been on the front lines defending a man like Muhammad Ali? Would you have had the guts to teach your class about Civics using this draft-dodging pariah as an example back then? I somehow doubt it.
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October 2018
AuthorJonathan Smith - A New Jersey Public School Teacher who disagrees with the National Education Association. |