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| © Abbie Parr/Getty Images Philadelphia Eagles link arms during the national anthem before the game against the New York Giants on… |
By Jena Greene, The Daily Caller
President Trump broke the internet and people’s brains when he announced he would be disinviting the Philadelphia Eagles from the White House on Monday evening.
“The Philadelphia Eagles are unable to come to the White House with their full team to be celebrated tomorrow. They disagree with their President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem, hand on heart, in honor of the great men and women of our military and the people of our country,” Trump said in a statement on Monday.
This comes in response to multiple Eagles players who have said they will not travel to Washington, D.C. to meet the president due to a difference in politics.
As an Eagles fan, I feel the need to address this. I’ve tried hard to abstain from mixing my favorite sports team with a president I have deep respect for. Unlike a lot of popular sports pundits, athletes, and even entire networks, I don’t believe in mixing sports and politics.
But let me just say this. I’m an Eagles fan. Most of my family is from Philadelphia. Many of them still live in the area. But none of them supported players’ decisions to boycott the White House. That’s not because my whole family is a bunch of Trump embeds. It’s not because we don’t believe in peaceful protest. It’s not because we think the Eagles hate the flag. It’s because we believe in showing the bare minimum level of respect to the highest office in the nation — and that’s at the very least.
If players like Chris Long and Brandon Graham weren’t able to visit the White House because they had a family conflict or couldn’t afford the trip, that’s one thing. If the president made a threat on their lives, that would also be one thing. But none of these are the case.
Many Eagles players and staffers didn’t want to make the three-hour drive to D.C. because they didn’t want to face a president who disagrees with their politics. In fact, only about 10 members of the Eagles franchise were expected to attend the White House on Tuesday if the invitation was still good, which is just downright sad.
Conflating sports with politics is almost never a good idea. Just ask ESPN. But as soon as athletes and their affiliates allow politics to bleed into the game, they better be ready to have an open conversation about it. Otherwise, it looks cowardly and uniformed. Which is exactly how it’s making the Eagles look now.
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