Observations, Ruminations, and Cantankerous Notions

History

There’s much about player protests, and some of it has me wondering just how much US History they actually remember. After all, these professional athletes are no longer in school, and we all tend to forget things over time. So here is a quick, easy, test. See how well you do:

1, The Emancipation Proclamation, that freed slaves in occupied areas in the US Civil War, was issued by whom?

President Abraham Lincoln, United States of America.

President Jefferson Davis, Confederate States of America.

Queen Victoria, United Kingdom.

Emperor Alexander II, Russian Empire.

2. The Thirteenth Amendment, which freed all US slaves, was ratified as part of which document?

The Confederate States Constitution.

The United States Constitution.

The Magna Carta.

The UN Charter.

3. The Fourteenth Amendment, which made US blacks citizens, was ratified as part of which document?

The UN Charter.

The Magna Carta.

The Confederate States Constitution.

The United States Constitution.

4. The Fifteenth Amendment, which guaranteed all US citizens, including blacks, the right to vote, was ratified as part of which document?

The Magna Charta

The UN Charter.

The United States Constitution.

The Confederate States Constitution.

5. The legal case of Brown vs. Board of Education overturned the doctrine of “separate but equal” in the previous legal decision in Plessy vs. Fergusson, making school segregation illegal in the United States. Which court made this decision?

The World Court

The United States Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

The Supreme Court of the Soviet Union

6. Which world leader sent troops to Arkansas to enforce the decision in Brown vs Board of Education?

President Dwight E. Eisenhower, United States of America.

Queen Elizabeth II, United Kingdom.

Nikita Khrushchev, Soviet Union.

Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold, United Nations.

7. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 made it illegal in the US to discriminate based on race, color, sex, religion, or national origin. Which legislature passed this law?

The Congress of the United States of America

The Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union

The UN General Assembly

The Parliament of the United Kingdom

8. On Sunday, September 24, there was an NFL game in London between the Baltimore Ravens and the Jacksonville Jaguars. Some players on both teams knelt in protest of what nation’s national anthem?

The United States of America

The Confederate States of America

The United Kingdom

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

9. These same players stood for the playing of what nation’s national anthem?

The Confederate States of America

The United States of America

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

The United Kingdom

10. Why are US athletes protesting this national anthem?

Racial injustice in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

Racial injustice in the Confederate States of America

Racial injustice in the United Kingdom

Racial injustice in the United States of America

Correct answers:

1 A; 2 B; 3 D; 4 C; 5 B; 6 A; 7 A; 8 A; 9 D; 10 D.

Score:

10 Correct: Good job! You know your US History and current events.

8-9: Not bad.

6-7: You might consider a refresher in US history and/or keeping up more with current events.

3–5: Took a few knocks on the field, eh?

0–2: Have you considered a career in NFL management?

What? Did someone say I’m mean? Or was it “fascist” or “racist;” those seem to be the catch-all slurs these days. Then I have one final question:

These players are protesting the national anthem the government that ended slavery in the US; who saw to it that the freed slaves were legally citizens; who addressed inequality and discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, and national origin; and continues to do so. Thanks to the government of the anthem they are protesting, these players have never drank from a segregated water fountain; eaten in a segregated restaurant; used a restroom segregated by skin color; attended a segregated college; played in a segregated sports league; or faced any of the things their grandparents and great-grandparents faced. Based on this, how can we best summarize these protests?

Spitting into the face of their benefactor

Insulting the nation that’s done the most for them

Insulting fans who, for the most part, love the nation they’re protesting

All of the above.

And if the owners and NFL management doesn’t think that it is, they need a refresher in US History, too.