Usually, there is a clear-cut good way and bad way to handle the fallout related to a feud. On Tuesday, the NFL Players Association made a terrible decision in response to President Trump disinviting the Philadelphia Eagles to the White House.
The NFLPA announced via Twitter that they were canceling “several player-led community service events for young people in the Washington, DC area.” They continued by saying, “NFL players love their country, support our troops, give back to their communities and strive to make America a better place.”
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) June 5, 2018
There is a major problem here. The player’s union decided they were not going to give back to impoverished children in Washington, D.C., just because of their dispute over the national anthem with Trump.
That’s an immature move by the union; they are taking out their frustrations on children who have nothing to do with the feud. If the players wanted to give back, as the statement reads, then they could still give back. In fact, with the White House celebration canceled, they have even more time to give back. There is no law that says they have to meet with the president in order to give back to the community in which he resides.
Plus, if these players truly cared about helping the black community, working with children in a city like Washington, D.C., which is nearly half African-American, would be a perfect opportunity.
By refusing to meet with the president, the players already potentially squashed the only opportunity they will have in their lives to have a calm, open discussion with the sitting president. They could have spoken to one whose administration supports prison reform, school choice, and cracking down on illegal immigration, all of which help the black community. It was their choice to pass up that opportunity, but now these players decided they should blow another opportunity to help African-Americans. It’s hard to say that’s a reflection of Trump when the economy is booming and black unemployment is at an all-time low (6.6 percent).
It’s just more politicization of sport from NFL players, the kind that has recently hurt their favorability ratings: The league went from having a 64 percent favorability rating in October 2013 to a 46 percent favorability rating last October, according to a Fox News poll.
If the NFLPA were more conscientious, they could have expressed disappointment at the president’s disinvitation, kept their promise to give back to Washington, D.C., and announced their commitment to helping the community. Instead, they used children as political pawns and may have just handed Trump a political win.
