I can’t remember the last time I pledged allegiance to the flag. By high school, no classrooms had flags in them and the Pledge of Allegiance was basically a thing of the past. Me not pledging was not only because it was a nonexistent practice, but also because I was a Jehovah Witness at the time. Yes, hard to believe, but there are a few people out there that don’t turn towards the flag with their hand of their heart for religious reasons. Now Muslim, I still won’t recite either the Pledge of Allegiance or National Anthem. My patriotism isn’t determined by if I stand up for a flag or can sing a song. The American experience is so much more than that, and it’s a shame we’ve reduced it to a piece of cloth.

In the 1940s there was a case called Minersville School District v. Gobitis that ruled that public schools could force students to salute the American Flag and recite the Pledge of Allegiance despite the student’s religious objections to these practices. This case in and of itself led to the persecution of Witnesses in the United States. Mobs of people burned down Kingdom Halls, Witnesses were jailed, and up to 1,500 Witnesses were badly beaten, physically attacked, castrated or lynched. Although The Supreme Court overruled the decision three years later in West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, this issue has somehow become controversial in the public sphere again and has caused opposition to become verbal or physically violent with those that choose to stay seated and exercise their First Amendment right, whether it be for raising awareness of continuous racial inequalities or just showing solidarity for those that are the most affected by these inequalities.

If a citizen believes that the United States is not living up to its ideals of freedom, liberty and justice for all, such a silent form of protesting is not only appropriate and justified…but it’s also protected. I personally think that a possible murderer should not get paid leave, or that women shouldn’t be told what they can and cannot do with their own bodies but to each his own, right? The only people that are truly upset by this silent protesting are most likely the ones that none of these issues affect. A good number of veterans are even standing behind Colin Kaepernick saying, “Far from disrespecting our troops, there is no finer form of appreciation for our sacrifice than for Americans to enthusiastically exercise their freedom of speech.” While I agree that real change won’t progress by simply staying seated, I appreciate that celebrities and icons are using their platforms to raise awareness.

To really create disruption and solve our problems, it’s important that we seek to create solutions and stop solely talking about the problems. Instead of talking about our inequalities and putting ourselves in a constant state of “victimhood,” we should be voting for people this November on the local, state and national levels who will push for growth policies that support opportunity, independence and creating and maintaining a tighter labor force. By focusing on these types of policies, we can combat many of the socioeconomic and therefore racial inequalities that are present among us for the long-run. Fighting with harsh words or fists won’t solve our problems and will only create more tension. We must fight with our votes on Nov. 8. 

Nakia Moore is a senior majoring in general business. Her column runs biweekly.