Jonathan Toews Says The Take-A-Knee Protests Have Lost Their Meaning

By Stephen Gossett in News on Sep 29, 2017 3:30PM

When the captain speaks, you listen / Getty Images / Photo: Sean M. Haffey

The movement of take-a-knee protests during the national anthem of course was spearheaded in the NFL, and it remains largely concentrated there, in terms of professional sports. But the topic has spread to other sports as well, and Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews weighed in on Thursday.

Toews told Sun-Times Blackhawks beat writer Mark Lazerus that the message of the protests has essentially become obscured.

"The conversation has to get past this whole anthem thing and get to where it needs to go — if there’s actually a difference being made in the end, and what changes are actually taking place," Toews said.

Toews added that "[t]he point’s been made a long time ago. Let’s move on to actually doing something that makes a difference."

The protests reached a flashpoint last weekend when a wave of NFL players kneeled, locked arms or both, or raised fists, amid President Donald Trump's barrage of condemnation against players who "disrespect" the flag.

As Lazerus points out, Toews is Canadian, and the NHL is overwhelmingly white and comprised of foreign-born players. Still, the conversation has gravitated toward the NHL in recent days.

There are only about 30 black players in the NHL. Among them, San Jose Sharks forward Joel Ward said he was considering kneeling during the anthem but decided against it, and Philadelphia Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds earlier this week said he "wouldn't cross out" taking a knee, according to Sports Illustrated. Devante Smith-Pelly, a forward for the Washington Capitals, has been critical of the idea that Canadians should stay removed from the issue. "It’s about people who look like me, who look like Joel [Ward], who look like all of us being killed, over and over, and nothing happening. It’s not an American-Canadian thing at all," he said, according to the Toronto Star.

The NHL regular season begins on Wednesday, October 4. The Blackhawks open the season at home on Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.