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The national anthem was written by a noted racist. This is undisputed fact. The game of football was also invented by a well-documented racist. Both must be accounted for in the conversation around kneeling, whose life matters...
American football began in the late 1800s (1870s), largely at “American Indian” boarding schools that were established as cultural assimilation mechanisms to “Kill the Indian, Save the Man,” as General Richard Pratt would proclaim.
More here http://www.carlisleindianschoolproject.com/
More here http://www.carlisleindianschoolproject.com/
The sport was used to assist indigenous children with unlearning their culture, heritage and traditions for the purposes of taking on and being accepted into dominant/American/white culture. Spoiler: it didn’t work
Because many of the players were small is stature and physique, they had challenges on the field and suffered multiple injuries. General Pratt, like any good “owner” of human capital, wanted to protect his investment; he called in Coach Glen Scobey “Pop” Warner for help.
Pop Warner engineered an entire football program at Carlisle Indian Boarding School—which was a FEDERALLY owned school, by the way, and created what we call not only Pop Warner little league football but also modern American football.
More here https://www.nativevillage.org/Messages%20from%20the%20People/team_that_invented_football.htm
More here https://www.nativevillage.org/Messages%20from%20the%20People/team_that_invented_football.htm
For my visual preferred learners, here’s evidence of the impact and influence of Indigenous people on the game we came to view as an “American” cultural tradition.
When we think about culture, traditions, and histories, ask yourselves whose history are we amplifying, whose history are we silencing and/or co-opting, and what sacrifices were made so we can enjoy things like a game of football.
The national anthem was written by a noted racist. This is undisputed fact. The game of football was also invented by a well-documented racist. Both must be accounted for in the conversation around kneeling, whose life matters, and #Kaepernick.
Our society needs a reckoning to unlearn mistruths so we can forge ahead, together, to curate a society that acknowledges its past misdeeds for the sake of cultivating a nation where everyone is valued and appreciated.
