New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees is in hot water after saying that kneeling is disrespectful to the flag. He spoke on his stance while speaking with Yahoo Finance.
“I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America,” Brees said. “I envision my two grandfathers who fought for this country during WW2. One in the army and one in the marine corp, both risking their lives to protect our country and to try and make our country and our world a better place. Every time I stand with my hand over my heart looking at that flag and singing the national anthem, that’s what I’m thinking about.”
Although he has since then apologized for his comments, in an Instagram post saying that his words “lacked awareness and any type of compassion or empathy” people still aren’t here for it, especially black people who have military veterans in their family.
One person, in particular, Whoopi Goldberg, co-host of The View took some time to make Brees aware that even though whites and blacks both fought in the war, only black people were discriminated against when they came home.
She begins by saying both her grandfather and father served the country but because they were black, they were denied the right to vote.
“This is a note to Drew Brees. I saw what you said, and I was kind of taken aback because you see my father and my grandfather both fought in World War 1 and World War 2, ” she said.
“And couldn’t vote in this country they fought for this country but couldn’t vote in this country. So, the privilege that one has when once says ‘my grandfather’s fought for the freedom,’ always knocks me out because so did my father and grandfather and we didn’t have the freedom to vote but we lived here so we fought for it.”
She then lets Brees know that choosing to kneel instead of stand during the pledge of allegiance is about black people having equal rights.
Goldberg adds, “So, when you say, people disrespecting the flag, I just need you to understand your family fighting for the rights in the country and my family fighting for the same rights in this country did not equal the same treatment. You can connect getting on a knee, if you want to, with the military but that’s not what this is about. This is about the promise of America that all of our fathers and grandfathers fought for, that only some of us have recognized and reaped the rewards of. I still think you’re a hell of a football player.”
