Matthew Will
Managing Editor
I’ll start by taking you back to Monday, Sept. 17, 2001. This was the first day the MLB (Major League Baseball) held games following the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks in New York City at the World Trade Centers. On this night, the New York Yankees and New York Mets wore hats with the letters NYFD (New York Fire Department) or NYPD (New York Police Department) in memory, honor and respect of those who risked and, in some cases, gave their life on that terrible day.
On that Monday night, as the sun began to set, America turned to their pastime, baseball. Teams began playing ‘God Bless America’ during the seventh inning stretch and some continue to play it to this day. America was joining as one through the one thing that this country loved for over a 100 years, baseball.
On Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2001, President George W. Bush would throw out the first pitch at game three of the World Series. The whole time who stood on that mound, chants of U-S-A echoed throughout Yankee Stadium. In this moment, the United States were at one of their most unified moments in history.
As time has gone on, sports have been a place where people can united and be one. We’ve seen proposals, military homecomings, family reunions and many other acts of unity at sporting events. These games are a place where people have fun and interact with people they do not get the chance to be with all the time.
But times have changed. Sports have become a platform for athletes and fans alike. The most well-known? Colin Kaepernick. He began his stand by simple sitting or kneeling for the national anthem, in protest of the ways black people were treated in the United States. From that point on, sports began to pull us apart.
Individuals disagree with each other over a simple action. The action was not the hurtful part, it was the reaction that made the difference. The way people acted not only badly represented themselves, but the NFL (National Football League) as well. Other athletes began to join the movement; fans joined as well. Violence was happening in some areas. The unity we felt on Oct. 30, 2001 had suddenly disappeared–a ll for a simple action.
What have we done? Where do we go from here? Are sporting events pulling us apart rather than bringing us together?
That is where we stand up. It is time to make sports great again. When you sit in the stands, you should feel excitement, not hate. The individuals who take the field have free speech, just as you and me. If you want to be a true American, let every American love and express their rights and privileges for living in this great country. Let’s unite just as we did that cold October night. We owe it to ourselves.
