African American Student's Perceptions Toward Nfl Kneeling And Trump's Reaction: Racial Justice V. Patriotism

Abstract

Colin Kaepernick's refusal to stand for the national anthem starting from the NFL preseason game in August 2016 as a way of peaceful protest for "racial justice" and subsequent reactions of President Trump through his comments and tweets suggesting that such a protest is un-American and un-patriotic spurred much controversy, leading to a national debate among all segments of population and splitting them deeply along racial and political lines. Many polls conducted on this issue revealed strong support for both sides; i.e., for Kaepernick's cause of protest, and for Trump's reaction. This article's primary objective was to examine how a sample of African American college students (as part of the millennial generation) view the NFL controversy. The study found that most of the young African American students have knowledge of the NFL anthem controversy; and, that a majority of them consider themselves NFL fans; agree with Kaepernick's cause for kneeling protests, agree with the way NFL teams and owners showed unity before the Sunday games by locking arms and kneeling. Conversely, they do not support firing of those who refuse to stand during the anthem; and, strongly denounce Trump's controversial 'SOB' comment at an Alabama rally. Overall, these young adults tend to be more moderate in their view on the kneeling controversy than those in the general population.