By Robert EnglishSpecial to the Chronicle

Last August, Colin Kaepernick took a knee for the first time during the national anthem in a protest of wrongdoings against African-Americans and other racial minorities in the United States. He received immediate backlash from fans all over the place, claiming he doesn’t respect America or is disgracing those who served in the military, even though that’s not what he was protesting. Nonetheless, the fans continued to boycott Kaepernick.

A year later, this controversy of athletes and sports teams using the national anthem as a platform for protest is an even hotter topic after President Donald Trump tweeted that players who do not stand for the national anthem should be fired. His comments sparked each team in the NFL to decide how to react to these comments. One of these teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers, decided to remain out of politics and in the locker room during the national anthem. Only one player, Alejandro Villenueva, a former Army Ranger, stood outside the tunnel to the locker room during the anthem.

I scanned the comment sections on Instagram to see how fans reacted to the Steelers’ decision to remain in the locker room and Villenueva’s decision to stand outside. I saw feelings along the lines of the team being a huge disgrace and fans saying they would never support the team anymore. Those same fans praised Villenueva and his actions, eventually leading to his jersey sales skyrocketing within the next week.

But even Villenueva came back the next day and spoke to the press, saying he regrets standing without his team and how he agrees that anyone has the right to protest or do whatever they want during the national anthem. He was the face of patriotism, of protecting what is sacred to many fans and he just agreed with the players they loathe.

The argument needs to change. Right now, the argument is about First Amendment rights and if players should have the right to kneel or remain in the locker room. I believe we shouldn’t even be talking about this. We should be talking about the reason that Kaepernick kneeled in the first place: racial injustice against African-Americans and other minorities in America. From the start of his protest, the talk has been around whether he should be fined or fired. Every time he kneels, fans erupt – calling him all sorts of expletives for disgracing their country, which is not his intention or any athlete’s intention.

Every time an athlete kneels for the national anthem, the conversation should be about why they do it, not the fact that they do it. Take the time to listen to why players do this and then we can talk about the real issues. Let’s talk about why there is racial inequality in the U.S. Let’s talk about why it is more likely for minorities to be physically harmed or harassed, especially by the police. Let’s talk about the hardships that minorities endure due to the sole fact that they are minorities.

This isn’t a conversation on First Amendment rights, or at least it shouldn’t be the conversation currently being talked about across America. This is a conversation on racial injustice. Don’t complain about someone disrespecting your country if you yourself don’t respect everyone in this country.

The views and opinions expressed in the Editorial section are those of the authors of the articles. They are not an endorsement of the views of The Chronicle or its staff. The Chronicle does not discriminate based on the opinions of the authors.