Obama hopeful national anthem protests spark a conversation
FORT LEE, Va. — Asked by a service member to weigh in on some NFL players kneeling during the national anthem, President Barack Obama said Wednesday he hoped the controversy would spark Americans to listen to others’ concerns and not just go into separate corners.
Obama’s wide-ranging town hall meeting with members of the nation’s military, taped for CNN, covered an array of hot-button issues. A widow of a veteran who received poor care from the Department of Veterans Affairs wanted to know why there wasn’t more accountability for some employees. A solider wanted to know how the gains he helped secure in Afghanistan would not be lost like some of those in Iraq.
On the topic of the national anthem, Obama said he hopes that those protesting recognize they do so under the blanket of protection provided by the nation’s men and women in uniform. But he also said, “We fight sometimes so that people can do things we disagree with.”
Since San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick began protesting before NFL preseason games, citing racial injustice and police brutality, his movement has slowly spread across fields and courts in the U.S.