As more than a tenth of NFL players were refusing to stand for the national anthem on Sunday in “solidarity” with other anthem kneelers and in “resistance” to President Trump, a few teams, including the Pittsburgh Steelers, opted to stay in the locker room during the performance of The Star-Spangled Banner. The Steelers’ decision — prompted by head coach Mike Tomlin’s desire to “protect” his players from having to choose how to handle the situation — was complicated when Steeler and former Army Ranger Alejandro Villanueva defied his coach’s orders and stood at the edge of the tunnel to show respect to the country he’d laid his life on the line to protect.
While the millionaires and billionaires in the NFL have chosen to fully embrace the politically and racially charged anthem protests — which a majority of fans find distasteful — the average Americans who make a living off of the NFL are already feeling some of the impact of that decision. As highlighted by Penn Live, one of those middle class Americans already experiencing some of the blowback from #TakeTheKnee Sunday is Susan Moedinger, owner of Steel City Sports, a Steelers merchandise store.
.png)
.png)
