Yesterday the Philadelphia Eagles were uninvited from the White House because in a statement put out by President Trump they “Disagree with standing proudly for our national anthem” Why is this a big deal? That was the reaction across social media yesterday. Why should people care about an invitation to the White House?
Maybe they shouldn’t. After all white house visits are mainly poorly given speeches with poorly placed jokes and pictures with the President. They are trivial in nature. They tie together sports and reality by putting the players on a global stage one last time before they move on to the next season. However with President Trumps controversial decision the trip has taken on a new meaning. It has been politicized. Never in our nations history has a team been uninvited to a white house ceremony. Have some skipped it? Yes, but never has any team been told by a sitting president that they may not attend. The Eagles reportedly would have sent a group of less than ten to the White House, and most would have been white players according to multiple reports. It wouldn’t have been a good optic for the President but none the less it doesn’t seem to me that any of our previous Presidents would have taken the action that Trump did.
This is also a turning point in sports history. If sticking to sports wasn’t dead when the President called those who kneeled sons of bitches last September than it certainly is now. Specifically because of the motivation behind banning the Eagles. “They Disagree with their President because he insists they stand proudly for our national anthem” The President has politicized the NFL past the point of return. Even after the NFL passed new, unpopular, rules banning players from kneeling on the field during the national anthem the President continues to bash the leagues players that do protest. Recently on a trip across America I spoke with an older Gentleman who was a vet and a Trump supporter who refused to watch the NFL because players kneeled and disrespected the flag. I held my tongue but this is now my blog so I just want to point out how blatantly wrong his statement was. The protest was never about the national anthem. It was and has always been about inequality and police brutality shown to the black population of this nation. It is not disrespecting the flag either, kneeling is actually the deepest form of respect. Most Christians kneel when they pray so kneeling to the flag is almost praising it. The point being the President has told his supporters the NFL is evil. It is unpatriotic, and it is not what they should be watching. Never in our nations history has a politician so blatantly politicized a sport.
The disinvitation of the Eagles to the White House furthers the Politicization of football in America. How people specifically Trump supporters react to this may differ though. Pennsylvania was a red state in last years election and a majority of the population voted for Trump. This will truly test the ties of what has more pull in America, sports or politics. Philly has some of the most die-hard fans in the nation are they going to react well to a president publicly shaming their team? My guess would be they won’t.
Which brings me to my final point. Is this a turning point in American history? Is this the point where sports are permanently intertwined with politics. The Warriors and Cavaliers have both said they will not be visiting the White House after this latest out burst by a President who they believe clearly does not want to talk about changing things for the better in their communities. Where does the American values psyche lie? Is it tied to a sports team? Is fandom stronger than politics? The biggest question though as in most things remains, what does this mean for our country?