Tag Archives: national anthem

Trump wants suspensions for NFL players who kneel during anthem

FILE PHOTO: Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones kneels with players prior to the national anthem prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, U.S., September 25, 2017. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo

(Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that National Football League (NFL) players who do not stand for the national anthem should be suspended for the season without pay.

The comments come a day after the NFL and the union representing its players said they were working on a resolution to the league’s national anthem policy.

The policy, which was announced in May, followed Trump’s denunciation of pregame protests which were intended to call attention to what critics say is often brutal treatment of minorities by U.S. law enforcement.

Trump and others have blasted the gesture as a sign of disrespect to the U.S. flag and the military.

“The NFL National Anthem Debate is alive and well again – can’t believe it!,” Trump said on Twitter.

“First time kneeling, out for game. Second time kneeling, out for season/no pay.

“The $40,000,000 Commissioner must now make a stand,” he said in reference to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

The players union, the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), recently filed a grievance over the league’s new requirement that players stand for the national anthem or wait in their dressing rooms.

The NFLPA claimed the new policy was inconsistent with the collective bargaining agreement and infringed on player rights.

The NFL and NFLPA said on Thursday no new rules relating to the anthem will be issued or enforced for the next several weeks while the confidential discussions are ongoing.

(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

NFL decision on national anthem protests- teams can be fined

FILE PHOTO: Washington Redskins tight end Niles Paul (84) and linebacker Ryan Anderson (52) and Washington Redskins linebacker Chris Carter (55) kneel with teammates during the playing of the national anthem before the game between the Washington Redskins and the Oakland Raiders at FedEx Field in Landover, MD, U.S., September 24, 2017. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo

By Doina Chiacu and Susan Heavey

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed a decision by the National Football League to fine teams if players on the field refuse to stand for the national anthem, saying if they do not want to stand maybe they should not be in the country.

Last season some NFL players kneeled during the anthem to protest police shootings of unarmed black men, provoking a controversy. Trump denounced the players as unpatriotic and repeatedly demanded an end to such protests.

Under the new policy unveiled on Wednesday by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, teams will be fined if players on the field fail to stand during the “Star-Spangled Banner.” Players who choose not to stand may remain in the locker room until the anthem is finished.

“I think that’s good. I don’t think people should be staying in locker rooms but still I think it’s good,” Trump told Fox News in an interview taped on Wednesday and broadcast on Thursday.

“You have to stand, proudly, for the national anthem. Or you shouldn’t be playing, you shouldn’t be there. Maybe you shouldn’t be in the country,” the president said.

The NFL Players Association said it was not consulted on the new policy and may issue a challenge should it violate the collective bargaining agreement.

The NAACP also criticized the decision.

“Instead of coming together to address an issue disproportionately plaguing the African-American, the NFL owners have chosen to bury their heads and silence players,” the United States’ oldest civil rights organization said in a statement.

“Players cannot disconnect from the aggression African-Americans face every day.”

Democratic U.S. Senator Ben Cardin said the president’s words were “inflammatory” but not unexpected, and added that Trump’s suggestion that players’ should be ousted is “never going to be acceptable to me and, I think, to many Americans.”

“This country stands for the constitutional protections of the First Amendment, the right to freedom of speech. That’s what this country is about,” Cardin told CNN in an interview.

Still, Cardin added, “what the NFL is doing right now is moving in the right path,” noting that employers can establish reasonable standards over employees’ expression.

(Reporting by Doina Chiacu and Susan Heavey; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Jonathan Oatis)

NBC plans to show player protests if they occur at Super Bowl

Some members of the Cleveland Browns team kneel, while others stand, during the National Anthem before the start of their game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, U.S., September 24, 2017. USA TODAY

By Lisa Richwine

PASADENA, California (Reuters) – U.S. television network NBC, broadcaster of this year’s Super Bowl, will show any players who kneel during the pre-game national anthem to protest racial inequality, the game’s executive producer said on Tuesday.

Several dozen National Football League players kneeled, sat or locked arms during “The Star-Spangled Banner” in the regular season, drawing rebukes from President Donald Trump who called it unpatriotic. Game broadcasters showed the protests during the initial weeks but reduced coverage of them later.

The anthem is typically shown live before the Super Bowl and this year will be performed by pop singer Pink at the Feb. 4 championship.

If any players decide to kneel at the Super Bowl, NBC will cover it, executive producer Fred Gaudelli said at a Television Critics Association event in Pasadena, California.

“When you are covering a live event, you are covering what’s happening,” Gaudelli said. “If there are players who choose to kneel, they will be shown live.”

Announcers likely will identify the players, explain the reasons behind the actions, “and then get on with the game,” Gaudelli said.

He also noted that the number of protests had waned since Thanksgiving.

The players who kneeled during the regular season said they were protesting the killing by police of unarmed black men and boys across the United States, as well as racial disparities in the criminal justice system. More than half of all NFL players are black.

The Super Bowl is the year’s most-watched U.S. television broadcast, attracting an audience of more than 100 million people. NBC is a unit of Comcast Corp.

(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

NFL: League not seeking mandate for players to stand during anthem

FILE PHOTO: NFL commissioner Roger Goodell smiles as he walks around StubHub Center before the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Chargers, Carson, CA, USA Oct 1, 2017. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

By Frank Pingue

(Reuters) – The NFL said on Friday it has no plans to mandate players stand for the U.S. national anthem, but will rather present a possible solution on how to end the controversial protests when it meets with team owners next week.

Commissioner Roger Goodell, along with the head of the NFL Players Association, will meet with the owners from Oct. 17-18 in New York where the issue of player protests during the U.S. national anthem is expected to command much attention.

“(Goodell) has a plan that he is going to present to owners about how to use our platform to both raise awareness and make progress on issues of social justice and equality in this country,” NFL spokesman Joe Lockhart said on a conference call.

“What we don’t have is a proposal that changes our policy, we don’t have something that mandates anything. That’s clear. If that was the case I doubt the head of the NFLPA would have put a joint statement out with us.”

The statement released on Wednesday said Goodell invited NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith to the meetings and that the agenda will be a continuation of how to make progress on the important social issues that players have vocalized.

The protests, in a league where African-Americans make up the majority of players, have continued through the current season, with some players kneeling and others standing arm-in-arm in solidarity.

The gesture is intended to call attention to what protesting players see as a pattern of racism in the treatment of African-Americans by U.S. police.

The issue has been exacerbated after U.S. President Donald Trump said last month that players who did not stand during the anthem should be fired.

Lockhart said the discussions will focus on how to use the broad platforms of the NFL, players and clubs to try and make progress on issues of equality, social justice and criminal justice reform.

“These are issues that are important to our clubs, issues that are important to our players, issues that are important to the communities in which we play,” said Lockhart.

“That’s what we are discussing. So for everyone who has speculated over the last few days that somehow there is a proposal that is set for a vote on Tuesday or Wednesday you are speculating.

“Those who are reporting it as fact are reporting it incorrectly.”

(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Christian Radnedge)

NFL owners to mull anthem rules as Trump ups protest criticism

Sep 24, 2017; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills players kneel in protest during the National Anthem before a game against the Denver Broncos at New Era Field. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – NFL team owners will consider requiring players to stand for the U.S. national anthem after President Donald Trump on Tuesday stepped up his criticism of silent player protests against racial injustice by targeting the league on taxes.

Trump, a Republican, escalated his feud with the National Football League in a Twitter post asking if the league should get tax breaks while players kneel in protest when the “Star-Spangled Banner” is played at the start of each game.

The world’s top-grossing sports league gave up its controversial tax-free status two years ago. Its owners are preparing to address the anthem issue at their fall meeting in New York Oct. 17-18, NFL chief spokesman Joe Lockhart told reporters on a conference call on Tuesday.

“Everyone at this point is frustrated by the situation,” Lockhart said. “The commissioner and the owners do want the players to stand. We think it is an important part of the game.”

The protests in a league where African Americans make up the majority of players have continued through the season, with some players taking a knee when the anthem is played and others standing arm-in-arm in solidarity.

While current policy says players should stand for the anthem and face the flag, no player has been disciplined for a protest, Lockhart said.

“Why is the NFL getting massive tax breaks while at the same time disrespecting our Anthem, Flag and Country? Change tax law!” Trump wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.

What Trump was demanding was unclear since the NFL has given up its tax-exempt status. The White House did not reply to requests for comment.

“There is nothing really here to give up,” said Lockhart.

Trump last month called on NFL team owners to fire players who kneel during the anthem to protest police violence against black Americans.

Critics contend Trump is fanning the controversy to distract from issues including devastation in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, tensions with North Korea and difficulties in pushing healthcare and tax overhauls through U.S. Congress.

Vice President Mike Pence walked out of a NFL game on Sunday after some players knelt, a move some critics called a publicity stunt.

Trump won the presidency with less support from black and Hispanic voters than any president in at least four decades.

Trump has squared off against the NFL before, having owned a team in the upstart United States Football League in the 1980s. That league folded in 1985 after an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL failed.

The NFL was granted nonprofit tax-exempt status in 1942, but gave it up in 2015 amid criticism from members of the U.S. Congress.

Trump has refused to disclose his own tax history, departing from a practice of U.S. presidents going back more than 40 years. Trump has said nobody cares about his tax returns, but critics say they could show conflicts of interest.

 

(Additional reporting by Daniel Bases in New York and Steve Keating amd Frank Pingue in Toronto; Writing by Susan Heavey and Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Scott Malone and Meredith Mazzilli)

 

Trump ramps up NFL fight, calls for ban on kneeling during anthem

Bruce Maxwell of the Oakland Athletics kneels during the singing of the National Anthem before his MLB American League baseball game against the Seattle Mariners at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California, U.S., September 25, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Lam

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump ramped up with his fight with the National Football League on Tuesday, calling on the popular league to ban players from kneeling in protest at games while the U.S. national anthem is played.

“The NFL has all sorts of rules and regulations. The only way out for them is to set a rule that you can’t kneel during our National Anthem!” Trump wrote on Twitter, fuelling his war of words with the multibillion-dollar NFL in his fifth straight day of public comments on the issue.

Representatives for the league and its players union could not be reached immediately for comment.

Trump earlier Tuesday praised two NFL teams that had largely steered clear of the controversy Monday night. The Arizona Cardinals linked arms and stood for the playing of the “Star-Spangled Banner” along with the Dallas Cowboys, who knelt before the song.

“But while Dallas dropped to its knees as a team, they all stood up for our National Anthem. Big progress being made-we all love our country!” Trump wrote, adding that “ratings for NFL football are way down.”

Television networks reported a mixed impact on viewership for Sunday’s games.

It was the latest salvo from Trump, a former reality television show host and political neophyte who took office in January, after he ignited the fight with the players in the biggest-grossing U.S. pro sports league last week.

On Friday, he told a political rally that any protesting player was a “son of a b****” who should be fired, and urged a boycott of NFL games, touching off protests by dozens of players, coaches and some owners before games on Sunday.

Trump’s verbal assault may play well with his conservative base at a time when the Republican president is grappling with North Korea’s nuclear threats, a humanitarian crisis in hurricane-struck Puerto Rico, an investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and a healthcare struggle in Congress.

Hillary Clinton, Trump’s ex-rival in the 2016 presidential contest, blasted Trump for targeting black players and stoking racial tensions.

“He’s very strategic about who he attacks, and he is sending a message. It’s a huge loud dog whistle to his supporters,” she said in an interview on the “CBS This Morning” program.

Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick first kneeled during the national anthem last year, refusing to stand to protest police shootings of unarmed African-Americans.

Several players have made similar gestures in what they said is a call for social justice, not a slight against the country or its flag.

Critics, including Trump, have said it is disrespectful. Supporters have said the protests embody the American right to free speech.

(Reporting by Susan Heavey, Jonathan Allen and Makini Brice; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

China makes disrespect of national anthem a crime

China's President Xi Jinping arrives at a welcoming ceremony for Brazil's President Michel Temer (not pictured) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China September 1, 2017.

By Christian Shepherd and Venus Wu

BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) – Anyone who mocks China’s national anthem faces up to 15 days in police detention after parliament criminalized such acts in a new law on Friday that covers Hong Kong and Macau.

Since taking over as president, Chinese leader Xi Jinping has ushered in new legislation aimed at securing the country from threats both within and outside its borders, besides presiding over a sweeping crackdown on dissent and free speech.

Protecting “the dignity of the national anthem” will help “promote patriotism and nurture socialist core values”, says the new law passed by the National People’s Congress (NPC).

It governs when, where and how the anthem, the “March of the Volunteers”, can be played.

The law bans its use as background music and in advertisements, rules out playing it at funerals and on other “inappropriate occasions” and prescribes administrative detention for any “distorted” or “mocking” renditions.

Those attending public events must stand to attention and sing in a solemn manner when the anthem is played.

The new law brings treatment of the anthem into line with desecration of China’s national flag, or its emblem, which has been a criminal offense punishable by up to 15 days’ detention since the 1990s. Those laws also apply in Hong Kong and Macau.

Wu Zeng, the office head of the NPC’s national laws panel, confirmed that lawmakers had agreed the law should also apply to Hong Kong and Macau by being written into their constitutional provisions, the Basic Laws.

The law has fueled concern in Hong Kong, whose residents have grown nervous over China’s perceived encroachment of the city’s autonomy following such events as the disappearance of booksellers who later emerged in mainland Chinese custody.

Hong Kong lawyer and pro-democracy lawmaker Tanya Chan said she expected “a series of obstacles” when the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997, adopts the law.

“The rights and freedoms protected under Hong Kong laws have come under challenge in recent years,” she said. “So it is right for people to be concerned.”

The city’s Justice Secretary, Rimsky Yuen, said he hoped “the intention of the national law would be upheld without affecting Hong Kong people’s basic rights and freedoms”.

In 2015, Hong Kong football fans booed the Chinese anthem during a World Cup qualifier, prompting a fine for the territory’s football association from world body FIFA.

Last month, Shanghai police detained three men for having “hurt patriotic feelings” by dressing up as Japanese soldiers and posing for photographs outside a memorial to China’s war with Japan, state media said.

 

(Reporting by Christian Shepherd in Beijing and Venus Wu in Hong Kong; Additional reporting by Philip Wen; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)