Brandie L. Davis: For many, anthem a farce

Concerning the most recent media controversy over a certain football player’s failure to stand for the national anthem, I would like to say this: Bravo!

We live in a country rife with poverty and injustice, corruption and greed. These are the facts. Luckily, we also live in a country where we are all free to speak out against the wrongs we witness or peacefully protest (as this athlete chose to do) in an effort to change things for the better.

This action did not disrespect our men and women in uniform; in fact I would say it was the ultimate tip of the hat to our military. The man who refused to stand knew he would face scorn and derision, and yet he also knew that his actions were protected by our armed forces.

Instead of focusing our anger on his protest, we should all be taking a good hard look at the state of our union today. The problems we face will not go away simply because we sweep them under the rug and pretend they do not exist. For far too many people living in the United States today, the national anthem is merely a farce.

This story was originally published September 10, 2016 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Brandie L. Davis: For many, anthem a farce."