September 15, the USWNT dominated Thailand 9-0 in Columbus, Ohio. It was the first time we saw star player Megan Rapinoe kneel-down as the rest of the players and stadium admired America by standing for the national anthem. Rapinoe did not start in the game against Thailand for reasons that are unknown. This week Rapinoe continued her protest by kneeling during the national anthem before the USA beat the Netherlands 3-1.
US Soccer published statements chastising Megan Rapinoe for her actions, but in the end they chose not to punish her. So far none of Rapinoe’s teammates decided to join her in silently protesting police officers.
USWNT coach Jill Ellis was the only one to speak out about Rapinoe’s recent actions. Although Ellis made it clear prior to the game that she expected Rapinoe to stand for the anthem, she said she understand where the player is coming from and still respects her.
From an interview Ellis had with ESPNW:
"I totally understand where Megan is, in terms of her willingness to talk about hard social issues. I respect that. I support that. Those conversations should be had. Me personally, in this environment for a national team, I don’t disassociate playing for your country. I think that’s a part of a national symbol. So in terms of standing for a national anthem, I think that’s an expectation of a national team player."
Rapinoe has her reasons for not joining everyone and taking a stand. She has said she will continue to protest the national anthem until she finds a better way to reach people and speak her mind. The next USWNT match is October 19th against Switzerland, so we'll probably have to wait until then to see how this plays out.
Will Rapinoe have more support from her teammates in the next game? Will this protest cause more issues? What will we be talking about next month? The waiting game starts now.
