Drew Brees Still Has A Problem With People Kneeling During The National Anthem
Today, Yahoo Finance released an interview with New Orleans Saints Quarterback, Drew Brees. In the interview, Brees was asked by Yahoo's Daniel Roberts how the NFL should respond to players who choose to kneel during the national anthem when the season starts up again. After Brees answered that he "will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country," he mentioned that both of his grandfathers fought in World War II and that he associates both the American flag and national anthem with their memories. Brees went on to add that while the national anthem plays, he not only thinks of all of the people that have fought in the American military, but of those who have also fought for civil rights in the 60s.
According to Brees, the country is definitely not perfect and we have quite a long way to go, but standing together while singing the anthem is one way to unite. While Brees did in fact dedicate an Instagram post to Blackout Tuesday in honor of Black Lives Matter, many on Twitter found his remarks today to be completely tone-deaf following the death of George Floyd and the protests that are occurring throughout the United States. This video immediately went viral and sent Brees' name to trend throughout the day thanks to many tweeting their reactions, including Lebron James.
Highlight:
readdanwrite</a> asks <a href="https://twitter.com/drewbrees?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">drewbrees what the star NFL quarterback thinks about "players kneeling again when the NFL season starts."@drewbrees: “I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country.”Full exchange: pic.twitter.com/MpCkFyOMed— Yahoo Finance (@YahooFinance) June 3, 2020
DREW BREES PLAYS FOR NEW ORLEANS BUT STILL DONT SEE WHY BLACK PPL FIGHT FOR EQUALITY..
— sunny (@isaiahrashad) June 3, 2020
The funny part is him still thinking they’re disrespecting the flag when they kneel
— Hovi Snow (@2streetz) June 3, 2020
Damn man my quarterback is named Karen 🤦🏽♂️
— Hoops Lover (@Yesiball) June 3, 2020
A picture is worth a 1000 words: pic.twitter.com/kDPZvTJTRZ
— DoubleD (@DoubleD37) June 3, 2020
Just another person who values property/symbols over people. The flag means nothing if there isn’t freedom and equality for all. Newsflash: real live people are more important than a piece of fabric.
— Amy (@PleasecallmeAmy) June 3, 2020
— Ryan Veach (@AyQueGross) June 3, 2020
It has never been about the flag, it's about the injustice. How is that so difficult to understand?
— Anne Wheaton (@AnneWheaton) June 3, 2020
So let me get this straight, the flag, that’s been turned into pants, bikinis and other things (against official code nonetheless) is more important than the lives of its citizens. Gotcha. It’s a good thing the people who are paid to protect him each Sunday don’t feel the same.
— tee hails (@teehails) June 3, 2020
I'm active duty and don't have a problem with it.I go to work for you to exercise that right. Who am I to tell you how to express yourself?That said, I also respect Brees' opinion because that's his right to have an opinion.Exercise your rights. Not everyone can.
— James (@James_AG1) June 3, 2020
This. Brees has a right to his view on it, and I have my right to think his view is misguided and wrong. For Kaep to lose his job over a lawful, peaceful protest was wrong. Thank you for your service!
— Taj (@Taj_Manian_LOL) June 3, 2020
Me cancelling Drew Brees but still saying saints to the super bowl . pic.twitter.com/QH9lENdTP5
— Rico ❤️ (@KxngG14) June 3, 2020
The conversation among Drew Brees and his receivers is going to be fascinating. pic.twitter.com/qVKYBLhtVk
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) June 3, 2020
How saints fans looking at Drew Brees now: pic.twitter.com/YQJAqRG8cn
— Deion (@DeionWilliams96) June 3, 2020
WOW MAN!! 🤦🏾♂️. Is it still surprising at this point. Sure isn’t! You literally still don’t understand why Kap was kneeling on one knee?? Has absolute nothing to do with the disrespect of 🇺🇸 and our soldiers(men and women) who keep our land free. My father-in-law was one of those https://t.co/pvUWPmh4s8
— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 3, 2020
While Brees has yet to respond to any of these reactions, some users imagined how he will feel in 24 hours.
Drew Brees in 24 hours: pic.twitter.com/M13YF1wn2n
— Isolated AB (@AB3127_) June 3, 2020
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TheOtherRightSide
I think they have a good discussion on the topic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ou4Drn2hEhM
Timey16
Criticizing the government = hating your nation, making you a traitor.
That is what dictatorships are made of.
PDD
He didn't say anything racist he just feels people shouldn't disrespect the flag. He's done a lot for the New Orleans community so he's clearly not an evil person. I seriously doubt he's saying this because he hates black people. He just feels strongly about honoring the flag. People are way too emotional right now.
Paradoxed
It's almost like he's being consistant or something.
If you criticize kneeling during the anthem for a movement based on disprovable lies about crime injustice, are people looting and murdering in the streets going to change the stupidity or the kneeling? No. Is Brees' commentary supremely needed right now. Also no.
seaplant12
Disprovable lies!?! Dude, there's like five hundred thousand videos of cops attacking non-looting peaceful protesters, journalists, kids, churches, black people, people sitting inside their own homes, and innocent people caught in the crossfire. I don't care where you or Drew Brees stands on the BLM movement or the kneeling, but criminal injustice is happening EVERYWHERE at the moment. Cops abusing people has been happening for years. I genuinely don't understand why you think it doesn't exist.
Paradoxed
Cops abusing their power, police brutality, and other injustices do happen. The claim that said injustices are widespread, systematic, and done with racial biases or intent is what certifiably does not exist.
You can show a video of police brutality, and if the evidence actually shows that it is (often times it isn't), just about everyone will call for justice, just like now. If you then want to claim that America at large is a racist conglomerate that has stuff like this happen daily, as planned, then you better have some good evidence to show it. And by all evidence we do have, that claim is complete bullshit. These are statistics gathered by the FBI every year, and show no targeting or unjust discrepancies in rates of arrests or killings of minorites, black or otherwise. In 2019, there were a total of 9 unarmed black men who were shot by police. Even if in all 9 of those cases the shooting was completely unjustified (which isn't always the true, if they are fighting a cop and trying to take their gun for instance), that would be 9 unjustified murders of black men in a country of 320 million people over the course of a year. Every unjust killing is a trajedy, and justice should be had for every case, but spreading emotionally-charged, evidence-free rhetoric about OPEN SEASON ON BLACKS! does nothing but spread undue hatred and fear.
seaplant12
Okay, here's some data for you.
"Compared to their numbers in the overall population, an unarmed black man is about four times more likely to be killed by police than an unarmed white man." – Washington Post (2019)
"About 1 in 1,000 black men and boys in America can expect to die at the hands of police, according to a new analysis of deaths involving law enforcement officers. That makes them 2.5 times more likely than white men and boys to die during an encounter with cops." – LA Times (Between 2015 and 2019)
"Final total of people killed by US police officers in 2015 shows rate of death for young black men was five times higher than white men of the same age" – The Guardian (2015)
Black Americans account for less than 13 percent of the population but they are shot and killed by the police at a rate that's over twice as high as for white Americans – Statista (2020)
"Under Rutgers' models, they found that roughly 1-in-1,000 black boys and men will be killed by police in their lifetime. For white boys and men, the rate is 39 out of 100,000." – Citylab, reporting on a study from Rutgers University (2019)
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toy soldier #5813
And now, a take that's so outdated there are cobwebs on it. American football might not even exist next year, and here's good ol' Drew talking about a 2 to 3 year old controversy. Whoop-dee-DOOOOOOOOOOOOO!