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Editor,

I was sad and angry to read the Other Viewpoints article in the Oct. 26 issue of the Ledger. I wasn’t disturbed by the authors’ outrage at the so called disrespect of the U.S. flag by athletes kneeling during the national anthem. Many people feel very emotional about our flag.

They may have served in the military or even lost friends and family in military service. And true enough, according the American Legion’s Flag Code; when the Star Spangled Banner is played, whether the U.S. flag is flying or not, civilians should stand at attention, face the flag or music, men should remove any hats and place the hat on the left shoulder with their right hand over their hearts. I find the athletes kneeling and bowing their heads a very respectful form of protest. When humans kneel they are showing respect in church, during a marriage proposal and other solemn events. Critics say it’s disrespectful to the flag, but no flags are harmed — and it could be taken as a form of respect for the flag to mutely signal your belief that the ideals it represents are not being realized.

That’s where my sadness and anger kicks in with regard to the letter in the paper. The authors of that letter state that regardless of what is happening to people of color in this country, they should just be happy they are still allowed to be here to pursue their athletic careers. In other words, black Americans should be thankful we allowed them to stay after slavery was outlawed. I have news for you my lily white neighbors. Slaves built the early wealth of this country on the land our white ancestors took from Native Americans. America wouldn’t be here today without the wealth created by the stolen, unpaid labor of black slaves working the fields on land taken from the Tribes. Now who is trying to rewrite history? Five of our first seven Presidents owned slaves!

And what is being protested against now? Racism is still alive and well and endemic in ALL of America’s government institutions and society. Did your parents have to have a life and death talk with you as children about the very special way you must behave around police?

Did you as a child have to worry about cops driving up in a car and shooting and killing you while you were playing with realistic looking toy guns? Did a school police officer throw you and your desk across a room because you would not obey a teacher? Do states allow schools in poor black neighborhoods to decay and neglect the education of black children?

Does our Criminal Justice system hand out harsher longer prison sentences to black men for exactly the same crimes committed by white men? Do police get away with shooting unarmed black men time and time again, while spending hours if not days talking armed white men into giving up their guns. The examples of racism perpetrated against people of color in our society are too numerous to list in this short letter and I haven’t even touched on the issues of voting rights, banking, housing, employment, healthcare, and good old common courtesy and respect.

“Detractors demand to know how such highly paid athletes have the nerve to question a country that has rewarded them so richly. They could ask the same question about Donald Trump — who owes his wealth to a nation that his inaugural address depicted in nightmarish terms. Trump can insulate himself from the dangers he sees. But these players are as much at risk from bad cops as other black men. A GenForward poll last year found that only 26 percent of young adult African-Americans trust police to do the right thing, compared with 73 percent of their white peers. Small wonder that Colin Kaepernick and other black athletes want to draw attention to what they regard as a mortal danger. Are there better ways for them to make their point? Maybe so. But it wouldn’t make much difference. To many whites, the only good black protest is no black protest.” I borrowed this paragraph from Steve Chapman at the Chicago Tribune. He said it better than I could.

Black people’s lives are in danger every day from the very people who are supposed to protect and serve! Yet all of you white folks who signed the letter believe they should just lie down, take it and keep their mouths shut. Would you? I don’t think for one moment that the soldiers who have fought and died for the U.S. flag would lie down and take that kind of treatment from law enforcement or society either! NO ONE SHOULD!

Sincerely,

Kathleen Stiles,

Hot Springs