Green Bay Packers Aaron Rodgers quarterback has asked fans to join arms Thursday during the national anthem.
(AP)
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and his teammates have asked fans to stand up and lock arms at Thursday's night game during the national anthem.
On Sunday, most of the Packers locked arms with one another during the anthem. Three players, Lance Kendricks, Martellus Bennett and Kevin King chose to sit instead.
“This is about equality,” Rodgers told ESPN Tuesday. “This is about unity and love and growing together as a society and starting a conversation around something that may be a little bit uncomfortable for people.”
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He added: “But we’ve got to come together and talk about these things and grow as a community, as a connected group of individuals in our society, and we’re going to continue to show love and unity, and this week we’re going to ask the fans to join in as well and come together and show people that we can be connected and we can grow together."
Green Bay Packers players linked arms Sunday during the national anthem.
(AP)
The Packers released a joint statement Tuesday urging fans to join them in linking arms during the national anthem. The players said the team’s coaches and staff will be joining them as well.
"Those of us joining arms on Thursday will be different in so many ways, but one thing that binds us together is that we are all individuals who want to help make our society, our country and our world a better place," the players said in the statement. "We believe that in diversity there can be UNI-versity. Intertwined, we represent the many people who helped build this country, and we are joining together to show that we are ready to continue to build. Let's work together to build a society that is more fair and just."
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Kendricks told ESPN the idea of asking fans to join them came from Bennett.
I think it was Marty's [Bennett's] idea," Kendricks said. "Aaron spoke first, and he kind of laid it out and laid out the fact that he's on our side and he understands the message being conveyed and trying to get across. And then Marty wrote a statement, and in the statement he said we're going to lock arms and he's going to challenge the fans to lock arms as well, so it kind of puts them in a position where it's like, 'Look, you're either going to unite with us or you're not.' I think that's really cool, because it puts them in a position where it's like now we're talking to you, so you make a decision, peacefully make a decision."
On Sunday, more than 200 NFL players knelt or sat during the national anthem in response to President Trump’s comments on Friday.
Trump said at a rally in Alabama: "Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, say, 'Get that son of a b----- off the field right now, out, he's fired!"
The protests began more than a year ago when former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand during the anthem as a protest of police treatment of minorities. This season, no team has signed him, and some supporters believe NFL owners are avoiding him because of the controversy.
The Packers will face the Chicago Bears Thursday at Lambeau Field.
#1: Tooconservative To: Deckard (#0)
Generic pap.
He isn't really telling us what he is protesting and what he wants done. He just wants to lure fans into protesting with the team.
It's been reported that CBS and other networks directed their camera crews not to show footage of the fans on Sunday during the anthem because they didn't want any fan seen shaking their fists and booing the protests. You can bet they'll show fans with linked arms but carefully selected ones. The camera crews will practice their coordination to make it look like the entire stadium is united in protest.
So now this dumbbell thinks they can lure enough fans to join them in armlinking to pressure the rest to join in.
I have doubts it will work but a lot of these NFL teams are based in Blue cities so it might work better than I think. Is Wisconsin going to go for this Lefty scheme, a state that sided with Walker and the GOP and delivered its electoral votes to Trump? Well, maybe. The GOP and Trump are strongest in the rural northwest of the state, not in the cities.
I notice they're using the white QB to lead their black SJW protest. Are we allowed to call him a porch monkey on the SJW plantation now?
Tooconservative posted on 2017-09-28 11:07:38 Reply Private Reply
#2: Tooconservative To: Deckard (#0)
Scott Walker already came out to say he would not link arms but would put his hand over his heart. That's a throwdown to everyone else.
Tooconservative posted on 2017-09-28 15:40:02 Reply Private Reply
#3: Tooconservative To: Deckard, nolu chan (#0)
Tooconservative posted on 2017-09-29 00:09:28 Reply Private Reply
#4: Tooconservative To: Deckard, nolu chan (#0)
. . .
While all players, for the Packers and Bears stood with arms interlocked. Only a few isolated groups of fans chose too. To the Packers credit, unlike last weekend, no Green Bay players were found on the bench. On Sunday, Green Bay”s Martellus Bennett, Kevin King, and Lance Kendricks protested by sitting on the bench. On Thursday night, every Bear and every Packer was on his feet.
Fan outrage, in Green Bay in particular, has been intense since last weekend’s protests. Many Packers fans called the team office throughout the week, letting them know how uncomfortable they felt with the protests, and team’s efforts to get the fans to join in the demonstration on Thursday night.
The protest fell flat on its face with the fans.
Tooconservative posted on 2017-09-29 11:03:02 Reply Private Reply
#5: nolu chan To: Tooconservative, Deckard (#4)
This morning on Undisputed, Skip Bayless on Undisputed took on Shannon Sharpe on the protest issue. He noted that Aaron Rodgers, the governor and the mayor had called for the people to link arms, while only a few isolated groups did so. He noted that he had expected maybe 80% of the crowd join in and that the opposition was obviousl Also noted was the fan/player interaction during the anthem. Some bullhorn-like voice or voices from the stands yelled for the players to put their hands over their hearts. Martellus Bennett responded with BTFO.
Bayless also insisted the claim that it was not about the flag was false; that it was all about the flag, quoting Colin Kaepernick.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000691077/article/colin-kaepernick-explains-why-he-sat-during-national-anthem
"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color." 8/27/2016
Joy Taylor jumped in to end the exchange.
Apparently, Skip Bayless got the message last night loud and clear.
nolu chan posted on 2017-09-29 12:08:19 Reply Private Reply
#6: Tooconservative To: nolu chan (#5)
In sports, it means 'blown the f--k out', meaning a crushing victory.
Otherwise it usually mean 'back the f--k off'.
There are apparently 3 other meanings to some groups.
It sounds like less than 1% of the crowd joined the armlink. Not that anyone is willing to count them for some reason. It would take an intern an hour to go through the footage and count all the fans who armlinked. But no one seems interested so far. Seems to me that that should be news worth researching and reporting but, so far, nada.
Tooconservative posted on 2017-09-29 12:35:29 Reply Private Reply