National Football League To Fine Teams if Players Protest

 

This is What’s Trending Today…

The National Football League, or NFL, has announced that it will fine teams if their players fail to stand during the playing of the national anthem¹.

Instead, players who do not wish to stand can wait in the locker² room until the song is over.

The NFL announced the new policy Wednesday. NFL team owners approved the measure. The league did not say how much it would fine a team if a player does not follow the new rules.

The “Star-Spangled Banner” is played before the start of each football game. Last season, some NFL football players chose to get down on one knee as the during the anthem instead of standing³. The move was in protest of police shootings of unarmed black men in the United States.

The majority of NFL players are African American.

Some football fans, and even US President Donald Trump⁴, criticized the players for appearing unpatriotic.

Last year, Trump used social media to demand an end to the players’ protests. In a tweet last October, for example, Trump asked whether the NFL should get money-saving tax breaks if its players continue, in his words, “disrespecting our anthem, flag and country.”

Trump also pushed the league to punish players who protest. The NFL last year rejected the president’s calls.

The NFL Players Association, or NFLPA, is a union for NFL players. It said the league did not seek its help in creating the new policy. In a statement,The union aims to protect the rights and interests of NFL players.

In a statement, the NFLPA said it would examine the policy and challenge any part of it that does not meet “collective bargaining agreements.”

The union added that NFL players demonstrate their patriotism⁶ in many ways, including, it said, “through their protests to raise awareness⁷ about the issues they care about.”

NFL Commissioner⁸ Roger Goodell also defended the patriotism of NFL players.

In a statement, Goodell said, “It was unfortunate that on-field protests created a false perception among many that thousands of NFL players were unpatriotic. This is not and was never the case.”

People reacted to the NFL’s new policy on social media. Some noted⁹ the new policy still permits the players to protest -- privately¹⁰.

Others said they would stop watching professional American football games.

One Twitter user asked @NFL, “If fans don’t stand [during the anthem] will you throw them out of the stadium?”

Another wrote, “I’m very curious to see how many NFL players will be on the field for the anthem that first NFL weekend.”

The 2018 season begins September 6.

And that’s What’s Trending Today.

I’m Ashley Thompson.

Words in This Story

national anthem - n. a song that praises a particular country and that is officially accepted as the country's song

knee - n. the joint¹¹ that bends at the middle of your leg

unpatriotic - adj. not having or showing love and support for your country : not patriotic⁵?

union - n. ?an organization of workers formed to protect the rights and interests of its members

challenge - v. to say or show that (something) may not be true, correct, or legal?

collective bargaining - n. talks between an employer and the leaders of a union about how much a group of workers will be paid, how many hours they will work, etc.

awareness - n. ?knowledge of a fact or situation

perception - n. ?the way you think about or understand someone or something?

stadium - n. ?a very large usually roofless building that has a large open area surrounded by many rows of seats and that is used for sports events, concerts, etc.?

curious - adj. ?having a desire to learn or know more about something or someone

1 anthem   

n.圣歌，赞美诗，颂歌

参考例句：

• All those present were standing solemnly when the national anthem was played.奏国歌时全场肃立。
• As he stood on the winner's rostrum,he sang the words of the national anthem.他站在冠军领奖台上，唱起了国歌。

2 locker   

n.更衣箱，储物柜，冷藏室，上锁的人

参考例句：

• At the swimming pool I put my clothes in a locker.在游泳池我把衣服锁在小柜里。
• He moved into the locker room and began to slip out of his scrub suit.他走进更衣室把手术服脱下来。

3 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

4 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

5 patriotic   

adj.爱国的，有爱国心的

参考例句：

• His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
• The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。

6 patriotism   

n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism.他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。

7 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

8 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

9 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

10 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

11 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。