The Super Bowl is fast approaching, and it is anyone’s guess whether the Philadelphia Eagles or the New England Patriots will win. Yet, there is one event that is certain, and Donald Trump will not like it at all.
The top professional football athletes who win the ring will have ample opportunities to celebrate, but will they take advantage of one of the highest honors of all? Traditionally, the winning team travels to the White House for a photo op with the President of these United States.
Donald Trump has created ill feelings among some of the football players. Some of the athletes have taken a knee in silent protest violence against black people during the national anthem. Trump said if they were his players, he would fire them.
As a result of the president’s rage against the players, attendance dropped. Of course, Trump invested in a football league in direct competition with the National Football League (NFL). The USFL did not last long, but 45’s long-time grudges are notorious. That may have had something to do with his vitriol against the NFL players.
Philadelphia Eagles lineman, Chris Long, has already decided to silently protest, too – he will not go to Trump’s White House. When he was asked about it during a Barstool Sports podcast, Long responded, according to Yahoo Sports:
‘No I’m not going to the White House. Are you kidding me?’
Last year, Long was a member of the Patriots. That makes this the second time he has had to decide whether to go to Trump’s White House. After the Patriots won last year, he stayed away, too. At the time, he said:
‘My son grows up, and I believe the legacy of our president is going to be what it is, I don’t want him to say, “Hey dad, why’d you go (to the White House) when you knew the right thing was to not go?”‘
Long donated all of his 2017 checks from the games to finance scholarships in his hometown, Charlottesville. He also promoted education equality in St. Louis, Boston, and Philadelphia.
The Eagles lineman stood during the national anthem, but he placed an arm around his team member, Malcolm Jenkins, as a show of support. Long also defended football player Colin Kaepernick for the same reason.
Featured Image via Getty Images/Patrick Smith.
