Perspective: How empty displays of sports patriotism allow Americans to forget the troops
The Los Angeles Dodgers wore camouflage hats in support of Military Appreciation Day during a game against the Reds on May 18, 2019, in Cincinnati. By Michael Serazio Michael Serazio, an assistant professor of communication at Boston College, is the author, most recently, of"The Power of Sports: Media and Spectacle in American Culture." May 24 at 6:00 AM President Dwight D. Eisenhower once reportedly proclaimed, “The true mission of American sports is to prepare young people for war.
Like the symbolic poppy that the patch will be stitched onto, the message is emblematic. From surprise homecomings to veteran salutes to enlistment inductions to fighter jet flyovers to remote feeds of soldiers at overseas bases, sporting events have become America’s great sanitized way of remembering the troops. And then, as quickly as the Blue Angels can speed over the stadium, everyone goes right back to forgetting about the military’s sacrifice.
That’s because in the post-draft era, it’s increasingly become sacrifice borne by someone else’s kids. The United States has nearly a quarter-million troops stationed across 172 countries and territories, yet less than 1 percent of the population serves, unlike in earlier eras, when conscription made participation widespread, the costs shared and attentiveness incentivized.
Similarly, those special camouflage uniforms that dress up players as soldiers feel fashion-deep — cheapening the commitment of the latter to mere performance and play, when their occupation is anything but. Indeed, the entire spectacle seems to want to channel our patriotic fervor into contests with unambiguous outcomes and no untimely casualties.
A decade ago, one survey found that sports fandom powerfully associated with support for the Iraq invasion and the Bush doctrine of preemptive strikes. More recently, as part of a national survey on which I collaborated, we found that sports fans were more likely to support increased defense spending, believe that peace is ensured through military strength, and affirm the necessity of maintaining robust armed forces.
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