This year’s ‘2020’ Olympic games in Tokyo are finally drawing close; what’s supposed to be an exciting time for Americans to show their pride is turning into a platform for hate crimes.
The Olympic games are already making the news thanks to activist athletes using their publicity as a means for protesting social and racial injustices.
All protests and demonstrations are strictly banned under Rule 50 of the games, but the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland allowed “respectful demonstrations on the topic of racial and social justice” during the trials, in an open letter to athletes.
This rise in sports activism is in part due to Colin Kaepernick, who became a martyr for racial injustice when he took a knee during the national anthem.
After that, several other athletes joined the movement, notably the Women’s US National Soccer team, who also started kneeling during the national anthem in protest of racial inequality and police brutality.
Everyone is allowed the right to peaceful protest under the first amendment, and it’s important that we maintain these rights. But there comes a point where it’s utterly ridiculous and just plain disrespectful…
That’s exactly what we witnessed when Olympian and third-place finisher in the hammer throw Gwen Berry turned her back on the American flag during the national anthem.
Berry claims she was “set up” after being told that the national anthem would play before the athletes stepped foot on the podium, instead it was played after they got onstage.
The USA Track and Field spokesperson Susan Hazzard said that the national anthem was scheduled to play at 5:20 p.m. that day, but the music didn’t actually start until 5:25. “We didn’t wait until the athletes were on the podium for the hammer throw awards. The national anthem is played every day according to a previously published schedule.”
Why would any athlete even bother competing for America if they can’t respect the symbols that represent our country?
The Olympics are a grand event for American patriots to celebrate our athletes. Athletes who instead of representing our country, choose to hate on it and disrespect its symbols.
Tyrus Murdoch, a Fox News Contributor spoke up about the lack of respect Berry had for this country’s flag.
“I have no problem with a professional athlete being a citizen, taking a respectful knee during the flag if that’s what you choose to do while still honoring the flag, I have no issue. She turned her back to the flag. This very simply, why are you even competing in the Olympics if you hate the flag and the country so much?”
As a country, we’ve never been perfect, but we still have a lot to be proud of, and we should not forget these things. As highlighted in a tweet by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (TX), he calls out the left for being so hateful towards America.
Why does the Left hate America?
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) June 28, 2021
Sure, we have our faults, but no nation in the history of the world has liberated more people from captivity, has lifted more out of poverty, has bled more for freedom, or has blessed more w/ abundance.
God bless America. https://t.co/7hH1FMzEn0
Berry’s protest doesn’t focus on highlighting racial or social injustice in America.
Instead, it’s a hate crime against our country and an example of another ‘activist athlete’ trying to cash in on the publicity that comes with saying America is awful.
This same country gave Berry the opportunity to compete in the Olympics and achieve a dream so many across the world have to fight twice as hard for.
With the Olympic games drawing closer, we can only hope that the athletes who compete for America actually WANT to represent this great country…
