High school students vulnerable to display of disrespect

The unpatriotic unwillingness of Colin Kaepernick to stand during the national anthem is now creeping into a handful of high school football games around the county, the way fungus kills a few leaves on every tree.

The dictionary defines “patriotism” as the act of vigorously supporting or loving one’s country. People who argue that doing the opposite of supporting or loving America is also patriotism either don’t understand what the word means or are trying to change it. The former displays ignorance and the latter shows diligence, albeit malicious.

Abraham Lincoln once said calling a dog’s tail a leg “doesn’t make it a leg.” Describing criticism of America as patriotism is similarly wrongheaded.

That’s not to say that being unpatriotic is illegal. It’s not, nor should it be. The First Amendment is alive and well and it applies here in full measure. The fact that, unlike authoritarian countries like North Korea, we allow criticism of our government speaks to the greatness of America.

This can be an incendiary issue, as too many people conflate their own political opinion with the larger issue. That leads to uncritical thinking and an erroneous result. It may help to look at this issue through another lens.

There have been countless bad mothers in the course of American history. In the 20th century, Marie Noe killed eight of her 10 children. In the century before that, Mary Ann Cotton killed all 12 of her kids. The list of maternal evil, despite being a small fraction of mothers, goes on.

Each of these mothers deserves criticism. I wouldn’t stand to honor any of them. But motherhood — the idea of a lifetime of loving self-sacrifice for the benefit of another — is one of the worthiest notions of all time. It would be hard to find someone unwilling to stand for the notion of motherhood. It’s possible — even morally right — to criticize specific mothers while still honoring the ideal of motherhood.

Our country has seen individual people do bad things, both leaders and regular citizens. Our system remains superior to any other country, but we’ve still fallen short of the ideal. Think of your favorite example of American misstep or misdeed for a moment. While that instance may deserve our denunciation, the aspirations of America do not.

Standing during the national anthem is a tradition we share as part of our American culture. After all, we’re not a multicultural country — we’re multi-ethnic. We share one culture and that includes a reverence for the creed set out in the Declaration of Independence: all of us were created equal and endowed by God with certain basic rights. If reading that assertion rankles, remember that it’s neither a controversial statement nor a political ideology. It’s the stated essence of what it means to be an American — as written, discussed and ratified by people who risked more than anyone alive today to acquire that designation.

If your local city council passes a law you oppose, show up at a meeting and give them an earful. If federal bureaucrats write a regulation that will deprive you of a job, carry a picket sign outside their office building. And if you believe a police officer has made a mistake, report it, denounce it, and tell the world about it.

But just as you wouldn’t criticize motherhood (or your own mother, for that matter) for the mistakes of individual mothers, nor should you criticize the national anthem that stands for our national ideals.

If Colin Kaepernick or any other misguided athlete wants to sit on the bench while the tens of thousands of other people in the stadium stand and cheer for police who risk their lives for others, I would disagree with him but I’d have to acknowledge that his protest is well-aimed.

But failing to stand for national anthem for the mistakes or omissions of individual Americans is wrong. Just as the Confederate flag is deeply offensive to millions of Americans, refusing to show honor to the national anthem is deeply offensive to many, many more.

And it’s one thing for a wealthy, pampered professional athlete to do so and quite another for impressionable high school students. Everything that happens at and through a school is meant to be a learning opportunity. Coaches and parent leaders who see a student following the unpatriotic example of Colin Kaepernick ought to have a dialogue with that teen.

Indeed, taking a few minutes to discuss the difference between the constitutional right to protest and the American responsibility to embrace and support our national creed could be the best lesson ever.

Mark R. Weaver is a resident of Granville and partner at Columbus law firm Isaac Wiles. Twitter: @MarkRWeaver.