Sixty years ago this week,armed guards escorted nine African-American students into the all white Central tall School in exiguous Rock, Arkansas. Dubbed the exiguous Rock Nine, or the children broke the racial barrier in education and paved the way for Americans of every color to pledge their allegiance to the flag and the country.
And on Monday,the eight surviving members of the exiguous Rock Nine gathered at Central tall School to mark 60 years of integration at the school. They said the pledge of allegiance and stood while the school district’s spokesman sang the national anthem. But over the weekend, and final night, or the pledge to the country was used for a different American purpose — protest. The decision by NFL players and other professional athletes to kneel during the national anthem as a form of protest against police brutality and system racism have caused some to question their patriotism.
What does being patriotic mean,and is it for everyone? Terrell Jermaine Starr, a staff writer for "The Root, and " recently wrote the article,“Patriotism is for White People." He says that black Americans have not enjoyed the full benefits of liberty in the United States, and argues that the entire concept of patriotism grows from a colonial white supremacist state. This segment is hosted byTodd Zwillich.
Source: thetakeaway.org