Air Force Veteran: 'I Feel Deeply Honored' When NFL Players Take A Knee

Carla Herreria
Updated

Those who criticize NFL players’ protests during the national anthem often argue that the gesture is disrespectful to American military veterans.

But one veteran has heard enough of the debate and is speaking out for himself.

“I’m tired of random people on the internet speaking for me,” Benjamin L. Corey, an Air Force vet who describes himself as a progressive Christian, wrote in an emotional blog post for Patheos.com. “I have a voice, and I am capable of using it.”

Corey, who is a public speaker and author of several religious books, has been openly critical of conservative Christians who back President Donald Trump, often pointing out the contradicting values on Twitter.

So when the debate surrounding the protests inspired by former San Francisco 49ers star Colin Kaepernick was thrust back into the national spotlight, Corey called out the conservatives who said taking a knee during the national anthem was disrespectful to military veterans like Corey.

“What I need those of you who claim taking a knee disrespects my sacrifice to hear, is this,” Corey wrote. “Instead of disrespected, I feel my sacrifice deeply honored every single time I see a football player take a knee ― because that represents the freedom of speech and expression that I gave so much of myself to uphold.

“In fact, nothing honors my sacrifice more than the public exercise of these core freedoms.”

The kneeling protests started in 2016 when Kaepernick began taking a knee during the national anthem in response to the spike in police shootings of black people. Since then, gestures made during the anthem are seen as a show of solidarity with Kaepernick and the fight against racial injustice.

Trump reignited the debate over the kneeling protests last week when he called for fans to boycott games and asked NFL team owners to fire players who participated in such displays. The president has since tweeted relentlessly against NFL players, denouncing the gesture as disrespectful of the flag and veterans.

As a veteran himself, Corey argued that the ones being disrespectful are actually the people who insult the individuals who are exercising their constitutional right to peaceful protest.

Corey explained on Patheos:

When you vilify and harass someone for the peaceful exercise of their rights, and when you participate in a public campaign to harm or end their careers simply because they are using the very rights veterans like myself have sacrificed for, you disrespect me.

You insult me. You dishonor me.

You exploit me for your own cause.

To read Corey’s take on the kneeling protests and his response to those who oppose it, read his full blog on Patheos.com here.

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Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza before a march to the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza before a march to the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
A protester stands in Freedom Plaza before the march against police violence.
A protester stands in Freedom Plaza before the march against police violence.
Young protesters hold signs in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Young protesters hold signs in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
A protester in Freedom Plaza that Saturday.
A protester in Freedom Plaza that Saturday.
Protesters in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza for the march to the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza for the march to the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.
Protesters in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters pose for a photo in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters pose for a photo in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters head toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters head toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters rally in the nation's capital on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters rally in the nation's capital on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters in Washington on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters in Washington on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters rally in Washington on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters rally in Washington on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters in Freedom Plaza on Dec, 13, 2014.
Protesters in Freedom Plaza on Dec, 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Georgetown Law students protest at Freedom Plaza that Saturday.
Georgetown Law students protest at Freedom Plaza that Saturday.
Protesters in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza before marching to the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters gather in Freedom Plaza before marching to the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Al Sharpton speaks to protesters gathered in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Al Sharpton speaks to protesters gathered in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Samaria Rice, mother of Tamir Rice, speaks to people gathered in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Samaria Rice, mother of Tamir Rice, speaks to people gathered in Freedom Plaza on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol.
Protesters march toward the U.S. Capitol.
Filmmaker Spike Lee participates in a march on the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Filmmaker Spike Lee participates in a march on the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 13, 2014.
Protesters march down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.
Protesters march down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.