The national anthem flap -- Flag Flap, if you will -- has divided the nation, separated us into two camps. Blessed are the peacemakers, it is said, and I cannot help but wonder if the best voice to take isn't the one seeking to pull us back together, to unify us. So, I offer the below words from Alejandro Villanueva as perhaps as good of peacemaking words as I have heard. Alejandro, a former Army Ranger, was the Pittsburgh Steeler who drifted out of the tunnel and held his hand over his heart during the national anthem. Two quotes from him, both from the same press conference.
"So out of all these players in the NFL who are taking a knee, I don't think as a veteran I take offense. In a big picture where there's a customized different thing, nobody thinks when you're taking a knee you're offending the flag. And they're saying it. And I don't think that anybody that's standing for the flag is not respecting the fact that there is a lot of unjustices and racial divide in our country. So we're essentially talking about two completely different things."
And, the second quote says much the same.
"We're not talking about the same thing. That's the thing people need to understand when it comes to the national anthem. And I was one of the first ones who took offense when Colin Kaepernick took a knee. I was one of the first ones who did an interview and, to a certain degree, I never criticized but I didn't agree with it. People don't understand, but the people who are taking a knee are not saying anything negative about the military, not saying anything negative about the flag. They're just trying to protest the fact that there are some injustices in America. And for people to stand up for the national anthem, it doesn't mean they don't believe in these racial injustices, they're just trying to do the right thing."
http://www.espn.com/blog/pittsburgh-steelers/post/_/id/25288/full-transcript-alejandro-villanueva-on-steelers-pregame-ordeal
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