Tomorrow is Veterans Day, the 11th of November, which also coincides with the armistice signed that ended the first world war. Here in the United States, it's a holiday, and schools tend to bring in veterans to speak to students about their experiences in combat. However, I've also noticed a trend, both in sports (Colin Kaepernick) and at my own high school. People sit/kneel during the national anthem or during the pledge of allegiance. Some do it in order to protest certain events, while others refuse to stand for their own personal reasons.
The reason I bring up this topic is due to the arguments I've seen that are against sitting for the pledge/national anthem. At school, we have debates saying "it's disrespectful to all those who fought for your freedoms to not even stand for the pledge." This argument seems rather compelling to my classmates whenever we discuss this, however I have my own take, and I would to hear what you all think about it as well.
My ancestors were slaves, kidnapped from their homes in Africa and forced into chattel slavery for their entire lives. My grandparents tell me stories of what it was like to grow up in the 1950s and 1960s, dealing with discrimination, racism, and police brutality. In fact, my grandmother told me how hard it was, as a black woman, to secure a job in post Jim Crow America. The veterans who came into our school were from WW2 onwards. During that same time period, the United States orchestrated countless coups in democratic nations: Guatemala in 1954, and Iran in 1953. In fact, the United States had a segregated military until 1948, when Truman ended it with an executive order.
But perhaps the worst are these: The US backed an authoritarian regime in South Korea, despite being "pro democratic". The US supported Saddam Hussein in the 1980s Iran-Iraq War. The US gave weapons to what became Al Qaeda. The US straight up invaded Panama in 1989 and arrested its leader (whom they supported for years) on drug trafficking. They left Iraq in state of chaos after the 2003 invasion. In fact, the US actively ignored the Rwandan Genocide, but made sure to invade Iraq after their invasion of Kuwait.
The point I have is that the US, like all countries, does not have a perfect track record for humanitarian intervention and democracy. These events, which disregarded the will of the people and a nation's sovereignty, is why I personally don't stand during the pledge of allegiance. If it's disrespectful to veterans to sit, then I find it disrespectful to stand, knowing about the millions who suffered from American foreign intervention and regime changes.
So, what are your thoughts on this issue? Is it an issue at all? Is the Pledge of Allegiance sole purpose to commemorate the bravery of the soldiers? I find this topic to be rather fascinating and controversial
