In The Land Of The Free Summary

In the article "In the ‘land of the free,’ are you free to sit out the national anthem?” author Jaweed Kaleen describes the history of patriotism in sports, and the people who have used these events to take a stand against the issues of our country. Specifically, Kaleem focuses on San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. Recently, Or Nick decided to remain seated during the national anthem of this year's preseason games. The quarterback has received a lot of backlash for his actions, all of which is detailed in the article. Kaleem wrote this article for the general public. It was published in the Los Angeles Times, which is read by approximately 4.3 million people weekly, all of which are from various social classes and races. Kaleem’s
Throughout the article Kaleem tries to maintain unbiased and informs the reader of the different sides of the controversy. He also gives a brief history of the anthem and event similar Kaepernick's. He remains calm and collected throughout the piece to allow the reader to make their own judgements. He is simply there to inform.
This article aggravated me. It wasn't the author’s writing that aggravated me, but more the events he wrote about. I had heard about what Colin Kaepernick did, but I never really received a full story. The fact that he chose to sit out of the national anthem, to dishonor the flag, in a game devoted to the men and women who risk their lives everyday to protect this flag sickens me. What really upset me is when the author wrote, “NBA legend Kareem Abdul Jabbar hailed him, saying his stance is “truly patriotic.”” Kareem is trying to say that by remaining seated and being so disrespectful, Kaepernick is being patriotic. I have no idea how he could think showing such little respect for the country is in anyway patriotic. Another thing that irritated me is when Kaleem wrote about Kaepernick's views on the police. This, in general, is a touchy subject for me. The purpose of the police is to