Veterans group not backing down from NFL over #PleaseStand ad rejected for Super Bowl program
It turns out the conversations regarding the National Anthem protests could ramp back up just in time for Super Bowl LII.
All season long, the NFL, as well as its players, coaches and fans have stood on both sides of the anthem debate.
At the moment, it is unknown if any players from the New England Patriots or Philadelphia Eagles will make any kind of display during the anthem on Sunday in Minneapolis.
But one organization in the pro-anthem camp is taking umbrage with the league.
AMVETS, also known as American Veterans, is a 70-year-old, non-partisan advocacy group that wants to encourage people to stand for the anthem and the flag. The group actually proposed a print advertisement that would appear in Super Bowl programs with the hashtag “#PleaseStand.”
The NFL wound up rejecting the ad almost two weeks ago, deeming it “too political,” in a public statement.
In response, AMVETS produced a 30-second public service announcement elaborating on its print ad.
Here is the organization’s statement: “Our message has always been patriotic and polite. It simply requests that people choose to stand during the National Anthem. It neither judges, vilifies or even opposes those who choose otherwise,” said AMVETS Executive Director Joe Chenelly. “We’re simply asking that people choose standing, and the NFL has made it harshly clear that it does not want veterans delivering this message anywhere near its biggest game. We think that’s wrongheaded.”
Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones played both sides of the fence throughout this season.
First, he planned a group kneeling demonstration before the anthem was played at his team’s Sept. 25 road game against the Arizona Cardinals. Jones later went on to say that he would bench any player that protested during the playing of the anthem.
As the season wore on, he would use the divisive issue to argue that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell did not deserve a contract extension. In early November, Jones even threatened to sue the league.
The Cowboys owner eventually backed down and Goodell did receive that extension.
This story was originally published January 31, 2018 at 2:25 PM with the headline "Veterans group not backing down from NFL over #PleaseStand ad rejected for Super Bowl program."