Should Americans Be Penalized For Fighting To Stand During The National Anthem

Refusing to stand, such as kneeling and locking arms during the national anthem has quickly become a questionable action by Americans. President Donald Trump has recently released a statement on the topic explaining his thoughts, which are that Americans, especially professional football players, should be penalized for refusing to stand during the national anthem. All of this started when Colin Kaepernick, a famous NFL football player, refused to stand during the national anthem. Kaepernick’s argument was that he felt all of the freedoms and rights were not being upheld by America (discrimination, oppression, and police brutality). While some Americans may be angered and feel disrespected, those who are taking action have the right to do so, due to the first amendment.
Should Americans be penalized for refusing to stand during the playing of the national anthem?
If there is an amendment that states Americans have the right to protest, which the first amendment guarantees, I do not think Americans should be penalized for refusing to stand during the national anthem in the protest of discrimination, oppression, justice, and other rights and/or freedoms that are not supported by the United States of America. I am unsure if this protest is effective in bringing a change but it is effective in bringing attention for the change. I understand the fact that there are veterans and U.S. servicemen who risked and lost their lives for the right to be able to protest but some of those veterans and U.S. servicemen are beginning to protest with some the Americans who are refusing to stand during the national anthem. Some Americans are arguing that this protest is an unpatriotic act, while others are saying that the protest is showing respect to the American values instead of showing disrespect to anyone or
anything. The purpose of this research paper is to create conversation and discussion between Americans about the right to refuse to stand during the national anthem. I am unsure if I am able to say another purpose of my research paper is to persuade Americans to refuse to stand during the national anthem; although, after conducting my research I hope I will be able to say whether or not it is my purpose. I am uncertain that the U.S. government, especially the President of the United States of America, will establish penalties for Americans who refuse to stand during the national anthem, due to the first amendment. The use of One Search and Library Databases, such as Academic Search Complete, will help to contribute to the validation of my original claim, by providing me with scholarly sources. I will provide statements, opinions, and reasoning to support my claim through research and interviewing. I hope to create a poll to take the positions of my peers on the subject of refusing to stand during the national anthem but may not be able to do so within the time frame allowed. First, I will write my proposal and submit it by midnight October 24, 2017, in order to follow the due dates. I will also be working on my Annotated Bibliography by searching for scholarly sources through One Search and Library Databases. Then, I will read the sources, take notes, and create my final thesis statement. Then, I will organize my notes to write the rough draft, followed by peer editing. Next, I will attend a writing session at the library for a second opinion to make sure my paper follows the teacher's rubric. While I am at the library I may visit the Help Desk for suggestions. Finally, I will revise my paper and submit it to Turnitin by the deadline. At the end of this project, I may share my research on social media to generate a discussion.