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Marques Colston of the New Orlean Saints during a game, Asim Bharwani, Flickr

The NFL and a History of Black Protest

For far too long, Americans have used football to sell the ideas of democracy and fair play. But for Black America, this is an illusion.
African American medalists Tommie Smith and John Carlos with their fists raised during the national anthem at the 1968 Olympics.

This Isn’t the First Time Professional Athletics, Protest and Politics Have Mixed

The long history of athletes taking a stand for racial justice.

NFL Tells Players Patriotism Trumps Protest

Here’s why that didn’t work during WWI.

Roger Goodell’s Father Had a Political Backbone—Why Doesn’t Roger?

The NFL commissioner is bending to pressure from a reactionary Republican president—something his father refused to do.
Football players with raised fists.
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Trump Said Protesting NFL Players ‘Shouldn’t Be In This Country’

We should take him seriously. Black Americans have been threatened with deportation before and it never ends well.

The NFL Has Officially Whitewashed Colin Kaepernick’s Protest

The co-opting of protests against racism has a storied history in our country.

Athlete-Activists Before and After Kaepernick

Kap wasn't the first, and he won't be the last.

Black Athletes, Anthem Protests, and the Spectacle of Patriotism

The NFL's response to player protests reflects decades of League and U.S. attempts to portray false images of post-racial harmony.

The NFL Marketing Ploy That Was Too Successful For The League’s Own Good

For decades, the NFL has used patriotism to advance its interests. Now fans expect it to be something it never was.
Basketball team listening to coach Don McClanen.

The Role of Sports Ministries in the NFL Protests

A number of black athletes are fueling their activism with Christian faith.

Colin Kaepernick: Historical Perspectives

Throughout history, one would be hard-pressed to find an example of black protest that most white people found acceptable at the time.

Patriotism, Partisanship, and “The Star-Spangled Banner”: A View from the Early Republic

Music continues to hold an allure for elites seeking to politicize patriotism in support of their privilege.

“Taking a Knee”: Simple Phrase, Powerful—and Changing—Meaning

Used in military and football slang, the phrase dates back to at least 1960.

How NFL Protests Mirror Berkeley’s 1960s Free Speech Movement

The football players are following in a long tradition of protest.

From Louis Armstrong to the N.F.L: Ungrateful as the New Uppity

The belief endures, from Armstrong’s time that visible, affluent African-American entertainers are obliged to adopt a pose of ceaseless gratitude.
Baseball card featuring Clem Daniels.

This Football Player Fought for Civil Rights in the '60s

Here's what he thinks about national anthem protests.
Whitney Houston singing the national anthem at the Super Bowl

The NFL, the National Anthem, and the Super Bowl

A brief history of their tangled saga of patriotism and dissent.
A colorful graphic featuring Curt Flood with a key on his necklace.

Curt Flood Belongs in the Hall of Fame

His defiance changed baseball and helped assert Black people’s worth in American culture.
People at a Black Lives Matter protest

The Power of Black Lives Matter

How the movement that’s changing America was built and where it goes next.

A Century of American Protest

A side-by-side look at some of the political protests that have shaped American politics over the past hundred years.
Football players kneeling in prayer on the field.

Football and the Political Act of Prayer

In football, prayer is—and has always been—political.

Agency, Order and Sport in the Age of Trump

Jim Thorpe, Jack Johnson, and the sporting middle ground.

Before Colin Kaepernick, There Was Eartha Kitt

How the entertainer was blacklisted for standing up to the President.
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Donald Trump’s Use of the “Star-Spangled Banner” Is an American Tradition

It's a short song with a complicated history.

‘Some Observations on the NFL and Negro Players’

Newly discovered league memo from 1966 anticipates controversies over the Colin Kaepernick protest.
High school student in Shreveport.

Taking a Knee and Taking Down a Monument

The struggle over Shreveport's Confederate monument converges with talk about a national anthem protest by high-schoolers.

The Forgotten Origins of Politics in Sports

Black athletes didn’t “politicize” American sports. They’ve been a battleground from the very beginning.
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The Ugly History of the Pledge of Allegiance — and Why it Matters

Requiring displays of patriotism have often been tied to nativism and bigotry.

From Liberty Tree to Taking a Knee

How America's founding era sheds light on the NFL controversy.

How the National Anthem Got Tangled Up With American Sports

Like most relationships, it’s complicated.

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