Mike Ditka asks kneeling athletes to get the hell out of the country: 'You don’t protest against the flag'
NFL Hall of Famer coach Mike Ditka has declared that players kneeling during the national anthem ought to "get the hell out of the country.” Ditka strongly criticized former quarterback Colin Kaepernick and others for starting the take-a-knee movement with Black Lives Matter in 2016. His outlook hasn't changed despite the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer. During an interview with TMZ on Sunday, Ditka said, “If you can’t respect our national anthem, get the hell out of the country."
“That’s the way I feel. Of course, I’m old fashioned,” the former broadcaster continued. “So, I’m only going to say what I feel … You don’t protest against the flag, and you don’t protest against this country who’s given you the opportunities to make a living playing a sport that you never thought would happen. So, I don’t want to hear all the crap.”
Floyd's Memorial Day killing sparked nationwide protests against police brutality and racial injustice, and the demonstrations -- sometimes violent -- have carried on through the summer. Both the MLB and the NBA have encouraged players the voice their support of the BLM movement via their uniforms and other apparel during warm-ups. At the MLB’s Opening Day earlier this week, players from both teams showed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Before the anthem was played, entire rosters of the Washington Nationals and New York Yankees, along with the coaches, knelt for a minute while clutching a single, long black cloth that stretched beyond the foul lines.
Media personality Mark Zuckerman shared a video on his Twitter handle, showing the Nationals and Yankees kneeling in a long row around the field with their hands clutching a black cloth before the pre-recorded rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner was played. Zuckerman wrote, “Everybody on both teams took a knee prior to the anthem. Then stood for the anthem.”
Following the Yankees-National game, all the players and coaches from the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants also took a knee and held a 200-yard black cloth that wrapped around the field. They stood in solidarity during a moment of silence, that was followed by a public service announcement video featuring Morgan Freeman as the narrator.
Dodgers star Mookie Betts, who signed a 12-year, $365M extension on July 22, joined players from the rival team in taking a knee during the National Anthem, becoming the lone member of the Dodgers to do so. He was flanked by teammates Max Muncy and Cody Bellinger with their hands on his shoulders as a show of support. NFL stars like Adrian Peterson have said they will "without a doubt" kneel during the anthem when the league returns. Last week, President Donald J. Trump said he hoped to see all professional athletes standing for the national anthem this year. “There are plenty of places you can protest,” he said during an appearance on Fox News. “You don’t have to protest on the raising of our flag.”
That said, the president has been a vocal critic of athletes who have knelt during the anthem.