NOTE TO STUDENTS: This is a controversial issue for many Americans. Be polite to those with whom you disagree when discussing these types of issues and always give the other person a chance to explain his/her point of view. Also, learn how to recognize when it is no longer productive to discuss an issue on which you strongly disagree.

1. a) What does Pennsylvania high school football coach Aaron Blanding say about Colin Kaepernick’s protest? (How does he view it? What does he say about it?)
b) Do you agree with Coach Blanding? Explain your answer.

2. What do CD East players say they plan on doing during the national anthem this season? Why?

3. a) How did senior defensive player Brandon Hickerson-Rooks explain why he thinks players should stand?
b) Do you agree with Hickerson-Rooks? Explain your answer.

4. How does CD East senior linebacker Tyler Boger view Kaepernick’s decision to sit during the National Anthem?

5. SB Nations reports:

Kaepernick began sitting during the national anthem this preseason as a silent protest to show support for people of color who he says are being oppressed in the United States, and to take a stand against police brutality. It’s an effort to use his voice and his position as a NFL player to effect change for the people who are suffering, and don’t have the same ability to create significant change.

"I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color," Kaepernick said, via NFL.com. 

"I'm going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me, this is something that has to change. When there's significant change and I feel that flag represents what it's supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to, I'll stand."

Kaepernick’s actions have led others in the NFL and other sports to sit or later take a knee - after meeting with former Green Beret and brief NFL long snapper Nate Boyer, Kaepernick decided to shift from sitting to taking a knee during the anthem.

Consider the following:

• Some high school coaches, players and/or teams across the country have begun not standing for the National Anthem.
• Eight New York City Council members now refuse to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance, joining a protest started by City Councilman Jumaane Williams.
• Terry Cunningham, chief of the Wellesley, Mass., police and president of the International Association of Chiefs of Police said, “American soldiers laid down their lives to protect their right to protest, which I understand. But find a respectful way to do it, don’t do it during the national anthem.”

a) Do you think Colin Kaepernick right about racial injustice? Is the U.S. a "country that oppresses black people and people of color"?  Is there systemic racism in this country? Explain your answer.
b) Ask a parent and ask a grandparent - have we made progress over the past 50 years?