A Short History Of 'Taking The Knee'

The Black Lives Matter’s (BLM) iconic symbol- taking the knee- has been a cornerstone of the global movement against racial discrimination. It was on Sunday (24 October), that the Indian Men’s Cricket Team, moments before the T20 World Cup 2021 clash between India and Pakistan began in Dubai, took the knee in support of Black Lives Matter movement. Sunday was the first time that the Indian team collectively made the gesture.

Sportspersons across the world have been taking the knee in support of the worldwide protests since last year though. The protests started after the death of George Floyd, an African-American, at the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis in the United States, in May 2020.

‘Taking The Knee’ - What does it actually mean?

As per the popular definition, ‘‘taking the knee’ (or taking a knee) is a symbolic gesture against racism whereby an individual kneels upon one knee in place of standing to attention for an anthem or on another such occasion’. It began with American football player Colin Kapernic, who, in 2016, kneeled in protest against the lack of attention given to the issues of racial inequality and police brutality in the United States.

It has since been adopted by sports players in countries across the world to register their protest or support and has been seen worldwide in non-sporting contexts such as the Black Lives Matter protests as well.

‘Taking The Knee’ - Origin, History and Controversies

It was during the American civil rights movement that Martin Luther King, undoubtedly the most popular civil rights activist of the 1950s-60s, took the knee in Alabama in 1965 to show solidarity with the protestors.

It was in reference to how police officers who kill Black people on duty are rarely prosecuted justly for their crime, as they either lose their job or are suspended on paid leave. In 2016 alone, at least 232 Black people died as a direct result of police action in the US, with the perpetrators getting a free pass in most cases.

While the NFL stars initially received huge backlash from the public who saw it as “disrespect to the flag”, and even from Donald Trump, who openly used cuss words for Kaepernick, the gesture was given a firm place in sports following the George Floyd incident in 2020. Since then, players have been taking a knee before events as a sign of protest and in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. However, then President Obama defended the player’s constitutional right to make a statement.

Last year, England and other European teams took the knee before every game during the Euro 2020 football tournament, to which English fans reacted with booing to the Black players. This immediately erupted into a serious political row.

Many British MPs, including Lee Anderson, made a call for boycott of England’s game as the player’s are lending support of a “political movement” of the ‘Marxists’, thereby alienating their “traditional supporters.” Former Education Minister Gillian Kegan said that taking the knee was “creating divisions”. British Home Secretary Priti Patel was even branded a “hypocrite” for saying that she did not support “people participating in that type of gesture politics.”

IOC allowed it at Tokyo 2020 after initial ban

More recently, it was during the Tokyo Olympics that Britain’s women’s football team took the knee before every match during the Olympics to protest against the racial abuse directed at England's men's team after their kneeling gesture at the Euro 2020 competition. Along with that, female footballers from Chile and Japan also took the knee, as did Costa Rican gymnast Luciana Alvarado.

Interestingly, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), citing its Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter, which forbids any kind of “demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda”, initially barred competitors from taking the knee. But it then decided to lift the ban, allowing athletes to "express their views" before and after competing, but not during the events, victory ceremonies, or at the Olympic village.