Veterans Say The NFL Censored Its Ad Against The Players’ Kneeling Protests

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AMVETS officials reported the National Football League won’t run their ad during the Super Bowl, presumably because it encourages players to stand for the national anthem.

It would’ve cost them $30,000, but the organization thought it was worth the cost to send this message to a culture desperately in need of a little patriotism: #PleaseStand. The ads would feature veterans standing to salute the flag, along with info on how people can donate money to a Congressionally approved charity. Wow. That doesn’t sound very controversial, does it?

Yet, the NFL rejected the ad buy and didn’t say why, according to AMVETS National Commander Marion Polk. Here’s a post that Polk posted about the controversy:

.@AMVETSHQ will NOT tolerate the @NFL refusing #Veteran right to free speech. We fought for it! #PleaseStand #SuperBowl pic.twitter.com/NARbC5zKuE

— Marion Polk (@AMVETSNatlCmdr) January 22, 2018

The Army Times reports that the NFL didn’t want the ads to be political:

In a statement, NFL Vice President of Communications Brian McCarthy said the Super Bowl game program “is designed for fans to commemorate and celebrate the game, players, teams and the Super Bowl. It’s never been a place for advertising that could be considered by some as a political statement.”

Wait, so football isn’t the place for a political statement? Isn’t that what patriotic Americans have been saying all along? McCarthy said AMVETS didn’t respond to a request for a content change fast enough and therefore missed the deadline.

Sounds suspicious to me.

This controversy, which began in 2016 when (then) San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to sit during the National Anthem, has been mishandled by the NFL all along. When President Donald Trump called any player doing this a “son of a bitch” and suggested they get fired for their actions, fuel was added to the cultural fire. Things have died down lately, which is probably how the NFL wants to keep it. But one thing’s for sure — the NFL has another public relations nightmare on their hands.

Can’t they ever get this issue right? Here’s a tip, I’ll give to you for free: err on the side of America and vets… not your spoiled, rich, entitled athletes.

Image Details: Airmen from Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England, hold the U.S. flag before the Miami Dolphins – Oakland Raiders football game in London on Sept. 28, 2014. The game was the first of three international NFL games that will be played this season at Wembley Stadium. As part of the pregame ceremony, the 48 Fighter Wing Airmen held U.S. and U.K. flags as a sign of the continued cooperation between U.S. visiting forces and their U.K. hosts. (U.S. Air Force photo by Col. Marc Vandeveer)

Veterans Say the NFL Censored its Ad against the Players’ Kneeling Protests