Former National Football League player and coach Mike Ditka denounced kneeling protests that take place during the national anthem.
The 80-year-old NFL legend told TMZ over the weekend that kneeling during the national anthem to protest systemic racism and police brutality is unpatriotic during an interview about a new women’s tackle football league he’s set to be chairman of.
“If you can’t respect our national anthem, get the hell out of the country,” Ditka said. “That’s the way I feel. Of course, I’m old fashioned, so I’m only going to say what I feel.”
“You don’t protest against the flag, and you don’t protest against this country who’s given you the opportunities to make a living playing a sport that you never thought would happen,” he added. “So, I don’t want to hear all the crap.”
His new women’s football organization is scheduled to begin in April of next year, saying, “These women are pretty and good looking and want to knock the crap out of each other — we’ll see how it works!”
Ditka’s comments come amid a nationwide discussion on race and police brutality in the wake of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis police custody. In June, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell apologized for opposing players who knelt during the national anthem to protest racism.
“We, the National Football League, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of Black People. We, the National Football League, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest. We, the National Football League, believe Black Lives Matter,” Goodell said in a video statement. “I personally protest with you and want to be part of the much-needed change in this country.”
Former San Francisco 49ers player Colin Kaepernick was the first NFL player to kneel during the national anthem in 2016 to protest police brutality and racism. He subsequently became a free agent in 2017 and recently settled with the league over claims that the NFL colluded against him. This year, Kaepernick’s former team raised a Black Lives Matter flag alongside the American flag and California state flag at Levi’s Stadium.
President Trump signaled last week that he won’t watch sports games if players kneel during the national anthem in protest of racism.
“Looking forward to live sports, but any time I witness a player kneeling during the National Anthem, a sign of great disrespect for our Country and our Flag, the game is over for me!” he tweeted ahead of Major League Baseball’s opening weekend.
