Trump's NFL Petition Gaining Steam as More 'Stand for the Anthem' Petitions Surface

Nick Kangadis | October 25, 2017
DONATE
Font Size

The call for NFL players to be required to stand for the American flag and the national anthem is gaining steam, and it looks like President Trump isn’t the only one to start a petition.

In the wake of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s letter to both NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the Executive Director of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) DeMaurice Smith requesting that the NFL require its players to “stand for the American flag and the national anthem out of respect for those who risk their lives for our freedoms, and then take a stand against domestic violence to keep American families safe,” Friends of Scott Walker have sponsored a petition calling for the same.

“My request is simple: stand for the American flag and the National Anthem out of respect for those who risk their lives for our freedoms,” the petition states, “and then take a stand against domestic violence to keep American families safe.”

The domestic violence angle the petition takes is a subtle jab at the NFL's history of letting players slide for beating their wives. According to the USA Today NFL Arrest Database, out of the 98 confirmed arrests of NFL players over the last three years, including 2017, 13 of those arrests, or a little over 13 percent, have been as a result of domestic violence charges.

Walker’s petition follows a similar petition posted by the Trump Make America Great Again Committee, which is a “joint fundraising committee authorized by and composed of Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. and the Republican National Committee [RNC].”

While more petitions possibly means the movement is gaining steam, MRCTV's emails and phone calls to the RNC regarding just how many people have signed the president's petition haven't yet been returned.

Regular citizens have also taken the petition route in attempting to call for NFL players to stand for the anthem. A petition on change.org is asking for signatures to request that the NFLPA partner up with veterans organizations to unify and stand for anthem on Veteran's Day. A portion of the petition reads:

In an effort to take a step towards unity, I propose that two groups,  the National Football League and Veteran Service Organizations across the county, combine and stand together on November 12, 2017, the day after Veteran's Day. 

By asking these organizations to stand together on a national day of unity, we can give a voice to a large percentage of American's. The VSO's can represent why America is the greatest nation on earth and the NFL can give account to what can make this country even better. 

The NFL has a product that people want to watch. But when politics and activism infiltrate one of the last escapes from such rhetoric, the same people who want to watch tune out. 

 

Thank you for supporting MRCTV! As a tax-deductible, charitable organization, we rely on the support of our readers to keep us running! Keep MRCTV going with your gift here!

donate