The Fallacy Of It All

Ad hominem is a latin term that describes a fallacious argumentative strategy in which a genuine discussion of a topic is avoided by attacking the character or other attribute of the person making the argument rather than addressing the substance of the argument itself.

Throughout history kneeling and genuflecting have been actions taken by the people of many cultures to signify and demonstrate reverence and deference to a symbol, religious beliefs, or an individual societally deemed superior. Religions such as Christianity and Muslim faiths use kneeling in many of their rituals and sacraments. The subjects of Kings, Queens, and Emperors have knelt in the presence of their ruler to show subservience and loyalty. When a loyal subject is knighted they kneel before the King or Queen to be touched on the shoulders with a sword. Before many athletic competitions, it is common for a team to “take a knee” as a prayer is recited asking God for safety and for victory. Men have knelt before women asking for their hand in marriage for centuries. Even Jesus himself is said to have knelt in the Garden of Gethsemane as he prayed to God to be relieved of the ordeal of the Crucifixion. I cannot think of an example of when kneeling was thought of as a demonstration of defiance or disrespect. Well, except for those who see kneeling during the National Anthem is an egregious act of the unpatriotic. But is it the actual act of kneeling that offends or is it the type of people who are kneeling that causes such outrage in those who claim to be morally pristine and patriotic?

In dissecting the current discussion surrounding the actions taken by some athletes during the National Anthem, it is odd that those casting dispersions on the “kneelers” never address the issue of why the athletes are kneeling. Those who engage in kneeling are mostly people of color who are protesting the treatment of people of color by law enforcement and society at large. They are down on one knee not in disrespect of the flag but in defiance of racism and discrimination. In doing so they are calling to attention that the flag represents equality and freedom for all not just for the privileged and the white. Their message is without question objectively and subjectively accurate and yet they are vilified and dismissed for kneeling.

What is now occurring is a national ad hominem assault on those that kneel, speak out, and protest the mistreatment of people of color. Their grievances are not met with logical discussion but instead those who oppose their views focus on the “kneeling”. The issues that are the impetus for the protests are left unchallenged because there are no facts or logical arguments to refute them. The problem, the dark secret that this impasse reveals is that, in a larger percentage of people than we collectively want to admit, there lives a view that people of color are less than. We live in a country with profound underlying racism and that is the ugly truth. There are those who would prefer the President to be a white man; who think people of color should work but never hold positions of leadership; who would think that black and brown entertainers should act, sing, and dance but never offer an opinion; and more specifically those who think athletes should play the game, be grateful for all the money they receive and stay quiet. Those who hold these racist filled beliefs are the ones who are loudest in the condemnation of this reverent but highly visible form of protest.

There was time in the not too distant past when certain men feared that they would be lynched for the slightest perceived slight. When a man was forced to endure racial slurs and death threats just so he and others like him could play professional baseball. When a middle aged woman was forced to suffer and endure the indignity of arrest simply because she wanted to keep her seat on the bus. When children had to be guarded by armed men so they could attend a good school. When boys and girls endured fire hoses and attack dogs to show injustice to the world. When men and women walked across a bridge to a certain beating and possible death in the hopes that the outrageous event would be televised and get noticed by decent white people. Well, as Bob Dylan so prophetically stated many years ago “for the times they are a changing”.

Over the course of the last fifty years, people of color have been granted the opportunity and have achieved success in athletics, entertainment, business, and entrepreneurship. With that success they have been able to attain wealth and social status that had been previously reserved almost exclusively for white people. This elevated position in society coupled with the power of social media has given those who have achieved a voice to speak for their racial kind. It is no longer necessary for people of color to wait for progressive white people to champion their causes because they now have economic and social power of their own. They are now on the highest levels of society with a voice that cannot be silenced with threats. It is this new world reality that irrefutably debunks the view that people of color are inferior and terrifies those who have always erroneously believed themselves superior because of their skin color.

Regardless of race or color, we should all admire the person who takes a stand for what they believe. We should all believe in the right of free speech and the discourse it creates. We should defend anyone who decides to protest, in a respectful way, something which they think is unjust. We should all support the freedom of achievement and the moral responsibility that goes with it. In short, we should all believe in and defend the fundamental tenets of the Constitution and our country it defines. Those who kneel in humble reverence before the flag believe in these rights and freedoms. They are kneeling and asking for us all to honor what the flag represents and to call to task all those who engage in overt and covert actions that degrade our freedoms and values. Those who protest injustice long for a discussion about that which they consider unjust. Their actions are to bring to the national spotlight their grievances and concerns. It is the public debate that they seek not to disrespect the flag or hurt those who are unaware or misinformed. They will not flinch when publicly scorned or capitulate to those who attack and threaten the messenger in an attempt to drowned out the message. They now have their own voice and they will be heard.