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49ers protest during anthem prompts Vice President to leave stadium

By Phil Watson

LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 07: U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks at the culmination of a faith unity walk, held to help the community heal after Sunday's mass shooting, at Las Vegas City Hall on October 7, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. On October 1, Stephen Paddock killed at least 58 people and injured more than 450 after he opened fire on a large crowd at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival. The massacre is one of the deadliest mass shooting events in U.S. history. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - OCTOBER 07: U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks at the culmination of a faith unity walk, held to help the community heal after Sunday's mass shooting, at Las Vegas City Hall on October 7, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. On October 1, Stephen Paddock killed at least 58 people and injured more than 450 after he opened fire on a large crowd at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival. The massacre is one of the deadliest mass shooting events in U.S. history. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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The controversy over NFL players protesting during the National Anthem took a turn Sunday when Vice President Mike Pence left Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday after several San Francisco 49ers players knelt during the song.

The ongoing controversy over NFL players protesting against police brutality took a dramatic turn on Sunday in Indianapolis when Vice President Mike Pence left Lucas Oil Stadium after several members of the San Francisco 49ers knelt during the playing of the National Anthem.

After departing the stadium, Pence took to the current administration’s media vehicle of choice (Twitter) to express his outrage and the reason for his abrupt departure.

Pence, the former governor of Indiana, was in town for Peyton Manning’s  induction into the Indianapolis Colts Ring of Honor, but didn’t stick around long.

The Washington Examiner reported that at least 20 49er players opted to kneel and place their hands over their hearts during the playing of the anthem.

The 49ers were the team at the forefront of these protests, with former quarterback Colin Kaepernick starting the protests during the 2016 preseason in response to several high-profile incidents of policy brutality against minorities.

It’s hard not to think Pence’s actions were planned out — his Twitter account posted a series of tweets that seemed to lack a spur-of-the-moment spontaneity.

This is the third straight week of NFL games that have been marked by backlash against player protests, a backlash which coincided with President Donald Trump’s comments about the protests on Sept. 22.

Trump’s first year in office has been marked by a public division over race relations that hasn’t been seen since the 1960s. White supremacists on Saturday staged their second gathering in three months in Charlottesville, Va.

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Strange times indeed.

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