Ethics of patriotism: NFL players’ protests against police violence

Abstract

This article traces debates about African American professional football players’ protests during the national anthem. After reviewing over 400 media texts, we found that each side operates from mirrored ethical positions that lead to competing conceptions of patriotism. We use the term “patriarchal patriotism” for people opposed to the protests since they hold that institutions of authority protect citizens, and therefore citizens owe them loyalty and deference. We use “constructive patriotism” for protest supporters since they hold that citizens have an ethical obligation to oppose inequities and work on the nation through protest and dissent. Each position, however, operates as two sides of the same racial–patriotic coin. We argue that the strategic embrace of patriotism by protest proponents limits the radical, transformative potential of the protests by operating on a nationalistic political terrain that suggests the racial state can operate for racial benevolence.