A professional soccer player who stood for the national anthem before a recent game as the rest of her team knelt said her actions showed she was being true to herself.
Rachel Hill, 25, of the Chicago Red Stars stood with her hand on a teammate’s shoulder during the national anthem last week, a decision which sparked backlash online. The players, including Hill, wore “Black Lives Matter” shirts.
Hill released a statement on why she chose not to kneel in a Twitter post Tuesday.
“I chose to stand because of what the flag inherently means to my military family members and me, but I 100% percent support my peers. Symbolically, I tried to show this with the placement of my hand on Casey’s shoulder and bowing my head. I struggled, but felt that these actions showed my truth, and in the end I wanted to remain true to myself,” she wrote.
Unity. pic.twitter.com/URvSvc2YVa
— Rachel Hill (@r_hill3) July 1, 2020
“If this wasn’t clear, let my words and further actions be. I support the black lives matter movement wholeheartedly. I also support and will do my part in fighting against the current inequality. As a white athlete, it is way past due for me to be diligently anti-racist,” she continued.
The U.S. Soccer Federation voted this month to repeal a 2017 policy that required players to stand during the national anthem, reversing a rule adopted after star midfielder Megan Rapinoe knelt during the national anthem before a match in 2016 in solidarity with former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, who began the controversial protests against police brutality and racial inequality.
The decision was made two weeks after protests began to spread across the country following the death of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police officers.
U.S. Soccer heralded the decision, tweeting, “Black Lives Matter. We can do more and we will.”
