Tim Tebow Kneeled During the National Anthem to Protest Abortion-Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
Former NFL quarter back Tim Tebow kneeled during the national anthem to protest abortion and didn’t draw the same criticism as former quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
The Truth:
Tim Tebow kneeled in prayer so often on the football field that the gesture became known as “Tebowing.” But Tebow didn’t kneel during the national anthem, and he didn’t kneel to protest abortion. That’s why we’re calling this one “fiction.”
Comparisons between Colin Kaepernick and Tim Tebow kneeling go all the way back to 2017. Various commentaries have compared the two. The Charlotte Observer opined in 2017 that Tebow would have been treated differently if he’d chosen to kneel for the anthem to demonstrate his Christian values. And, at some point, those comparisons (incorrectly) jumped from hypothetical to literal.
In reality, Tebow kneeled before, during and after football games. He didn’t kneel during the national anthem. Tebow recently declined to answer how he’d handle the national anthem if he were still an NFL player in an interview. But he talked about how sports can be an opportunity to “share certain things you believe in” when used the right way:
For me, it was also the way that I tried to do it was a big part of it, as well. Obviously, that’s a big issue in today’s society, and people do it in a lot of different ways. For me, it was just something that my biggest dream, honestly, was to try to be a good role model. And it wasn’t necessarily just the way, in what I did or in how I talked about it. It was also in just the way I would try to treat people.
“One of my favorite quotes is ‘Every day I share the gospel, but every now and then I use words,’ you know? Meaning I shared what I believed, hopefully, with the way I treated people and hopefully [with how] I cared for people, whether it was just these fans or talking to you guys or whoever it was. So, hopefully, that was something I shared with people a lot more than anything that I said.”
Colin Kaepernick said he kneeled for the national anthem because, “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color.” He’s now out of the league and suing NFL team owners for collusion for allegedly blacklisting him because of the national anthem protests. Tebow, on the other hand, is out of the league and playing minor league baseball.
So, both Kaepernick and Tebow are known for known for kneeling. But they kneeled for different reasons, and at different times. That’s why we’re calling this one “fiction.”