Oregon Women's Soccer Follows Anthem Protest
27 Jan 2018
Written by Drake A. Hills
EUGENE, Ore. Ducks central midfielder Sophia Chambers sat at the edge of her seat with her heart jumping out of her chest. There was no soccer match to play, but instead she passionately shared how she felt when kneeling for the national anthem during the 2017 Oregon Soccer campaign. Alongside seven of her teammates; Halla Hinriksdottir, Caitlyn Wong, Emma Eddy, Mia Palmer, Eden Hardy and Jazmin Jackmon, and Chambers knelt during The Star-Spangled Banner in the final ten of nineteen fixtures played. Yet, in those final ten anthems, Chambers rose from kneeling midway through, which would become the median in a veritable tug of war.
Game faces were on. Pregame music played. Ducks Soccer was set to board the bus to Drake Stadium on September 28th to face UCLA in Westwood. Suddenly, the Oregon coaching staff received an unexpected call from their match opponents. The call had no correlation to the game itself, but a message to inform the Oregon Ducks that the Bruins players were planning to take a knee during the national anthem. In light of NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick’s recent actions, UCLA wanted to kneel in solidarity with the ex-San Francisco 49er to bring awareness to current social injustice issues in the United States. It was what came next that would change the dynamic of Oregon’s 2017 season.
UCLA’s controversial act took the Ducks by surprise. Nine matches had already been played. Although a brief conversation was held in pregame, Oregon coaches and players were focused on preparing for what was at the time, the top ranked team in NCAA division one women’s soccer. That UCLA Bruin squad would eventually play in the national championship.
Following the road trip to Los Angeles, Chambers said the team met to discuss in depth what the protest was about and that coaches insisted that the players “have each other’s backs”, as teammates from that moment forward. Another meeting transpired that excluded coaches.
Chambers said she was not one of the more vocal participants in the second discussion, considering her exiguous amount of knowledge on the topic. At that point, Chambers used her free time to do research on the movement and Colin Kaepernick, but understood those who opposed the protest. The Los Angeles native takes pride in her Jewish upbringing, adding that her parents raised her to see everyone as equal. The junior midfielder wears her captain’s armband on one sleeve and her heart on the other.
In hindsight of player protests in the National Football League, national anthem protests have been kept distant, allowing students on the campus of the University of Oregon to have conversations. Yet, the dialogue pertains to someone they may never know. Consequently, the story has changed for students on the University of Oregon, specifically for those of color.
The women’s soccer team was the first athletic program to kneel during the anthem at the University of Oregon. On its roster, just three players identify as Black or African-American. Those same three players, Eden Hardy, Mia Palmer and Jazmin Jackmon are a part of a Black student population that is less than two percent, attribution coming soon.
“It was hard dealing with this topic during season, especially with the feedback in the team,” Jackmon said. “I thought there would be more understanding on why some of us chose to kneel. With that said, some of my teammates decided to join us and that was awesome.”
Jackmon transferred from Santa Clara University following the 2016 season and has meshed well with her new teammates. But Jackmon said she felt confused as to why there was such an opposition regarding the cause, realizing there was a misunderstanding of the reason behind it.
“Some players thought it was disrespectful to the military, the flag and maybe even to the president but it had nothing to do with that. I think it comes down to everyone’s background, honestly,” Jackmon said.
Chambers said her roommate, who she did not name, was strictly opposed to kneeling during the anthem because of family that serves in the armed forces, feeling that kneeling disrespects those men and women who fight for America.
“I completely understand and respect her opinion,” Chambers said. “That’s something I can never take away from her, considering how family is such a huge aspect in my life.”
However, Mia Palmer felt her passion for standing up to social injustices in America means no harm. Palmer was one of the youngest players who knelt but has been a part of the fight against oppression of African Americans before her days as an Oregon Duck began.
The freshman defender from Portland is no stranger to the movement, participating in marches herself. Palmer credited her twin brother, Dylan, for his influence as an activist and mentioned a program he administered, Race Forward, at their alma mater Grant High School. The program is collaboration between students, faculty and staff to induce conversations regarding race within the community.
Mia has three more years as a Duck, saying that anthem protests in her freshman year will hopefully lead to discussions about race and progressive action at the University of Oregon.
“There’s a lot of people who disagree with what we did but this experience will encourage myself and others to get more involved, ask questions and have those conversations needed,” Palmer said.
The efforts to have those conversations were on the minds of many players. Captain and goalkeeper, Halla Hinriksdottir, said that participating in the anthem had a direct tie to the conversations had in the athletic department.
Hinriksdottir was born and raised in the country of Iceland and said coming to America opened her eyes to so much more than soccer.
“I definitely believe that being an international student has affected my view on everything,” Hinriksdottir said. “I have a very different background. Every country experiences racism but I believe the racism in the United States is very unique and on another level.”
Hinriksdottir later said that prior to her arrival, she had no idea of the severity of America’s racial climate but once she began connecting with peers and consuming larger amounts of American media, she was convinced that change is needed. Learning did not stop at season’s end. Halla recently attended the Black Student-Athlete Summit at the University of Texas at Austin.
The players who knelt were on the same wavelength, striving to continue the conversation but to also build a stronger rapport with the community.
“In the long run, I want this to carry on into next season but there are many different ways to raise awareness but to also get involved,” Jackmon said.
“Kneeling only does so much. It doesn’t physically help people. We’re going to reach out and find a way to contribute to our community,” Hinriksdottir said.
Jackmon and Hinriksdottir were a part of a group of players that made contact with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People or popularly known as the NAACP, in Lane County with the intentions of collaborating in the future.
Action has been taken with Oregon Soccer with the NAACP as Colin Kaepernick has taken action with his Million Dollar Pledge to support the local organizations many Black communities, which reached its milestone on January 31, according to Kaepernick.
Chambers made a final to adhere to both sides, searching for understanding.
“I will continue to believe, support and defend the foundation of what our flag should and must represent,” Chambers said. “In this time of our lives, I believe not all of the meaning behind the flag is well supported, but yet misrepresented.”
Nevertheless, the conversation of race has begun although the outcome and reaction to Oregon Soccer’s efforts remains to be seen. First, spring season must come before the opportunity to shine returns. In the meantime, community will always be in season; therefore, players who knelt and opposed national anthem protests can come together.
“Kneeling is just the tip of the ice berg,” Hinriksddottir said. “The rest is what we are contributing to.”