Descendant of National Anthem Writer Says Blacks Oppress Their Own

RadioOnFire.com - Colin Kaepernick's latest detractor has taken his protest of the Star-Spangled Banner more personally than any athlete or entertainer can, and that's because they are not descendants of its creator, like she is. Shirley Carole Isham, 80, is the great great great granddaughter of Francis Scott Key, the historical figure who authored the song's lyrics during the War of 1812. “I cry every time it’s played because I have so much admiration for my grandpa and the national anthem," she said during an interview with USA TODAY on Wednesday [September 14]. And it is that sense of attachment she has to the patriotic hymn, which turned her off when she saw the San Francisco 49'ers QB kneel as it played, she told the USA TODAY.

“It just broke my heart to think that someone that gets so much money for playing a ballgame, who is half black, half white would do this. So many of his black race are oppressed, but it’s not by the whites, it’s by their own people. Look who their leaders are, and the president. Has (Barack Obama) done anything for these people?" said Isham. “If he’s not going to honor his country and his countrymen, he’s dishonoring himself. This tells you an awful lot about him."

Many publications covered Isham's statement, with a focus on her having a grievance over a perceived disregard of military veterans when he refused to stand for the nation's anthem, with headlines quoting that it broke her heart. While her projection of Kaepernick is one shared by millions of citizens, it is not the only sentiment held by those who share Francis Scott Key as a common ancestor. Suzanne Key Boyle Herrmann is a second cousin of the anthem's author, and she supports Kaepernick. “He had every right to do what he did. And because of what he did it has sparked conversation and conversation is so healthy in this country to have on the issues of equality and rights," says Herrmann. "We as a nation, I think since the anthem was written 202 years ago, have evolved greatly. But I understand protest. I understand how people feel. We have a lot to think about.''

Source: USAToday