What the Left and the Right Get Wrong About the NFL Protests

Over the past month, sports and politics have collided in the US like never before; Trump merely added fuel to the fire, by weighing in on the "taking a knee" controversy. Fundamentally, the right and the left must remember that, in addition to being a First Amendment issues, it is also a labor law issue in which team owners have some prerogative to dictate the actions of their employees. While the American right is wrong to view the protests as an assault on American values and traditions, the American left is equally wrong to assume that a sporting event or venue is an ideal venue to promote social or political causes. Americans watch sports, music, and movies for entertainment, not because they want to be told what to think about hot button political issues. Finally, a perusal of the statistics reveals that it is inaccurate to suggest that there is a "national epidemic" of police shootings. Yes, for civil libertarians, it should be a serious problem, and we should constantly look for ways to improve policing. But we can not allow media hysteria, in the service of a particular political agenda, to dictate our national policy.