KEEP ON KEEPING ON

National Anthem Protest Spreads as NFL Expresses Support

NFL commissioner says he encourages the controversial protest.

Protests against the pregame playing of the national anthem continued among National Football League players, as Los Angeles Rams defensive end Robert Quinn raised his fist and three Miami Dolphins players kneeled during separate games Sunday. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who started the protest against racial inequality last month, also took a knee during the national anthem on Sunday. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell expressed support for the protest, saying it was “productive.” “I truly respect our players wanting to speak out and change their community,” Goodell was cited as saying by The New York Times. “We don’t live in a perfect society. We want them to use their voice. And they’re moving from protest to progress and trying to make things happen in communities,” he said, according to the Times report. Kaepernick’s controversial protest, which has angered some fans, has spread from team to team and even inspired other athletes to join in. U.S. women’s soccer star Megan Rapinoe has expressed solidarity with Kaepernick, and on Friday, an entire high school football team in Seattle kneeled during the anthem to show support.