The college marching band world was somewhat shaken this past weekend when five members of the Southern Methodist University Mustang Band took a knee during the national anthem at the home football game against Texas Christian University. This peaceful protest follows a serious of similar protests made by college and professional football players, cheerleaders, and fans across the country, but this is the first case of band members participating in the movement. This provides a different context and has colored the responses of people across the country (especially fellow musicians). The protest also took place at a game which was dedicated to the Dallas first responders who have recently died in the line of duty, most notably the five officers who were shot down following a peaceful Black Lives Matter movement in early July. This further complicates many people's reactions to the protest. I took the opportunity to speak with several members of the band as well as an organizer of the protest in order to gain a better understanding of the context and to give them an opportunity to voice their thoughts and opinions.

Controversy

The fact that this protest was made by band members while on the field presents some unique questions and dilemmas. When football players or cheerleaders take a knee during the national anthem, that is something that they are doing when they are not the center of attention. It is somewhat their personal time and it does not interfere with them doing their job. On the other hand, band members are in the spotlight during the national anthem. For most marching bands, your job is to perform a field show during pregame and during the halftime in addition to supporting the team by cheering and playing short tunes in the stands. The marching band is meant to be the core of the football team's support along with the cheerleaders and any other spirit groups. Some involved in the marching arts believe that when you put on the uniform, you lose the right to express your individuality. There is a certain degree of credence to be given to this statement, as much of marching band depends upon absolute conformity to the given requirements. If you do not play your music as written or march in a show exactly as directed, the intended image or sound is not conveyed and it reflects badly on the band as a whole. The success of a marching band is dependent on a team effort by every member. However, does taking the knee when the band is at a halt (that is when the band is not moving on the field) negatively affect the performance, particularly when the performer is still playing the music as the SMU musicians did? There is also concern about how appropriate it is for bands to take a political stance as they are seen as a direct reflection of the university while in uniform.

(Note: The protesters did ask their director, Don Hopkins, for permission to protest. He was quoted by a student to have responded by "warning [them] of the critique [they] could face as well as letting [them] know that he respected [their] decision to kneel regardless of whether he believed in [their] cause or not.)

When asked about the decision to still play the anthem while taking a knee, protester and mellophonist Sydney Clark said the following:

"We did play, for a couple of reasons. First being it's our job to play and we wanted to make sure that we upheld our commitment as band members. Second being that I, personally, felt like it was needed. We didn't know that the demonstration would fall on a night where fallen officers would be honored until late, and I feel like there were people in the audience who needed to hear the national anthem played because of what it means to them. Though, to me, the anthem is a constant reminder of America's past treatment of my ancestors, I realize that for some people, it doesn't have the same connotation. In a nutshell, that's what the demonstration was meant to show. There are two sides to every story, and if we didn't play, neither side could express their sentiment towards the anthem. For that reason, I feel as though not playing would have defeated the purpose."

That then leads into the second issue that people have voiced with the protest which is timing. The alignment with the dedication to fallen officers is a matter of some frustration for many people, but it was not an intentional effort. The band members' actions were part of a larger protest on campus. One of the organizers for the protest, Naomi Samuel commented:

"When selecting the day of the protest, organizers had no knowledge that there were going to be ceremonies honoring fallen officers. And when receiving this information, I initially hesitated because I knew people were going to misconstrue our protest of racial injustices to us protesting the honoring of the lives of law enforcement that were lost defending our very right to demonstrate... We knew at least one day in advance and after thinking about it, I stood firmly with our decision. Officers died protecting the peoples' right to a dialogue about what the statement "Black Lives Matter" means. To not continue this dialogue until we make this great nation a safe haven for every skin color would be the only way we could truly be dishonoring their lives."

This is not a view shared by everyone, though. Some members of the band itself disagree with the musicians' actions and have expressed anger and outrage. One band member, who wishes to remain anonymous, remarked:

"When you kneel at the SMU football game honoring these police officers and firefighters... you are specifically disrespecting those deceased individuals; flipping a bird to their families, and making yourself look more foolish than brave. I respect the sentiments of those who kneel during the anthem, though I do not agree. But in our case, where it was publicized in multiple ways that SMU would be honoring the fallen police during the game... the individuals who kneeled picked the wrong day. They disrespected several heroes, and earned what should be a negative reputation for the Mustang Marching Band."

The Message

The message being sent by this protest is part of the larger Black Lives Matter Movement, but the participants also hope for a more local impact. When asked what the message was that they hoped to convey to the SMU community, piccoloist Sabreena Robinsin responded:

"I personally hope, as someone that is a part of a campus that endeavors to shape "world changers," we can actually utilize that motto and change facets of our society that still seem like they were never truly affected by the Civil Rights Act of 1964."

Samuel added:

"People are probably wondering when this group of students in particular will hush up. And I hope that these "people" know that we are not afraid to be loud until change is not only visible, but overwhelming. To have seen a #BlackLivesMatter flag waving at another University of Vermont, I have seen that Southern Methodist University can do more—can be better. I have raised my standards for my wonderful university and hope the student body will take the time to listen before casting judgement."

The Response

There have been varied responses to the protest both within the band and outside of it. As mentioned above, some of the band members took issue with the timing of the protest. An anonymous band member also expressed frustration that the protesters "did not discuss their plans with the rest of the organization" and that "to most who saw it, the move came off as selfish and ignorant." Still, other band members greatly supported the decision. Sousaphonist Ahmad Saleh, who did not kneel during the protest, observed that "they send a powerful message kneeling during the anthem along with everyone else asking for equal rights yet they didn't put down their instruments because the protest doesn't mean that they don't believe in and respect America."

Responses from outside members have spanned the spectrum from disgust to praise as well. Clark offered that "there has been a lot of backlash from alumni. But I have received nothing but praise from my friends and family. To me, it completely validates our actions... before the game, we were all feeling very nervous about the possible response and we took a second to pray and reflect on why exactly we were doing this. We thought of the people murdered by police brutality and realized the opportunity we had to simply bring awareness to the issue by taking part in the demonstration." Monday evening, she sent me a follow-up email to inform me that they had received "a lot of good feedback from more recent band alums." Robinson also reported backlash from strangers on social media and another anonymous band member said that many fans and families (as it was parents' weekend) expressed displeasure with the demonstration.

Conclusion and Opinion

As the first action of its kind, this protest was bound to be rife with conflict. It touches on some very sensitive nerves, especially given the timing for the still grieving city of Dallas, and addresses an issue that makes emotions run on high for people on all sides of the issue. Personally, I think the protesters behaved admirably. As a university marching band member myself, I hold university bands to a very high standard and I believe that these musicians found an effective way to get their message across while still fulfilling their duties as members of their band and respecting their colleagues as well as other parties involved. The timing may not have been ideal, but the message stands and is worth noticing. Hopefully, people will pay attention and these protests will soon be a part of history instead of our current reality.