New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) kneels down with teammates before the U.S. national anthem was played ahead of an NFL football game against Miami Dolphins at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday Oct. 1, 2017. Saints players then stood when the anthem was played. (AP Photo/Tim Ireland)The NFL owners have decided to fight a recent loss of television viewers with a dose of patriotism (NFL Policy Will Require Players on Field to Stand for Anthem, Show Flag 'Proper Respect', Scooby Axson, Sports Illustrated, May 23, 2018). The issue worsened last year when Donald Trump said that owners should fire players who disrespected the flag. One problem is that it's not clear whether the viewer loss is due to player demonstrations or changes in the broadcast market and viewing technology.
Another problem is that the player's union has not agreed to the new rules. The owners are allowing the players to remain in the locker rooms during the anthem, but the NFL Players Association has said:
"The NFL chose not to consult the union in the development of this new 'policy' . . . The NFL players have shown their patriotism through their social activism, their community service, in support of our military and law enforcement and yes, through their protests to raise awareness about the issues they care about. The vote by NFL club CEOs today contradicts the statements made to our player leadership by Commissioner Roger Goodell and the Chairman of the NFL's Management Council John Mara about the principles, values, and patriotism of our league. Our union will review the new 'policy' and challenge any aspect of it that is inconsistent with the collective bargaining agreement."
A third problem is that the national anthem has not always been played at the start of all NFL games. Actually, it wasn't even a national anthem until 1931.
"There are records of "The Star Spangled Banner" gracing the diamond going back as far as 1897, but the song wasn't adopted as the national anthem until 1931. . .
After World War II, the commissioner of the NFL at the time, Elmer Layden, made a specific plea to keep the anthem as a game-day tradition.
'The playing of the national anthem should be as much a part of every game as the kickoff, he said. 'We must not drop it simply because the war is over. We should never forget what it stands for.' " The national anthem in sports (spoiler: it wasn't always this way), AJ Willingham, CNN, September 25, 2017
A fourth is that the Defense Department has paid millions of dollars to professional sports teams to stage patriotic tributes, according to a congressional report:
". . . $6.8 million was spent on "paid patriotism" tributes since 2012. Among the paid events the report flags as questionable were on-field color guard presentations during the national anthem, enlistment and reenlistment ceremonies, the unfurling of a giant flag by members of the military, and ceremonial first pitches.
While many teams held such tributes for the military free of charge, 50 pro teams received money for them, according to the report . . .
The NFL's Atlanta Falcons received the most money of any team, with $879,000 in contracts since fiscal year 2012, according to the report. The New England Patriots were second, with $700,000 in contracts." 'Paid patriotism' at NFL games blasted in Senate report, Chris Isidore, CNN Money, November 4, 2015
A solution to many of the problems would be to stop playing the national anthem at games. There is nothing particularly patriotic about watching a sports game. But NFL owners are not alone in wrapping themselves in the flag for reasons other than patriotism.
Removing the Star Spangled Banner would probably be as popular with the NFL owners as having public ownership of more NFL teams. Community ownership of the Green Bay Packers is a "historical anomaly" the NFL owners would like to get rid of, but can't. Exemptions for professional sports from antitrust laws, including a monopoly on video coverage in the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, would be at risk.
"If you're patriotic and you know it, clap your hands." But remember that the Supreme Court said in 1943 that
"No official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion . . . To believe that patriotism will not flourish if patriotic ceremonies are voluntary and spontaneous instead of a compulsory routine is to make an unflattering estimate of the appeal of our institutions to free minds." Patriotic Ceremonies, February 28, 2003
And that these two patriotic moments were voluntary and spontaneous, but not routine.
Iwo Jima Flag Raising, Joe Rosenthal, 2/23/45, ©1945 Associated Press
World Trade Center Flag Raising, Thomas E. Franklin, 9/11/01, ©2001 The Record (Bergen County, NJ)
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