Steph Curry on veterans, anthem protests: 'It's the opposite of disrespectful to them'

Curry addressed those who say that kneeling for the flag is disrespectful to the military

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry exists as a public figure beyond basketball, and this was never more evident than when President Donald Trump tweeted at him back in September.

Trump rescinded the Warriors' White House invitation based on Curry expressing that he might not want to go, which promptly settled any debate within the Warriors organization and signaled the fact that athletes are now interwoven into political discourse.

To that end, Curry wrote an essay titled "The Noise," which was published on The Players' Tribune on Saturday -- Veterans Day -- asking that Americans not shy away from the real issues facing veterans and saying that he felt obligated to use his platform because "In 2017, in America, silence is no longer an option."

He addressed the fact that many people believe that when athletes protest, particularly during the national anthem, they're disrespecting the military:

But when someone tells me that my stances, or athlete stances in general, are "disrespecting the military" -- which has become a popular thing to accuse peaceful protesters of -- it's something that I'm going to take very, very seriously. One of the beliefs that I hold most dear is how proud I am to be an American -- and how incredibly thankful I am for our troops. I know how fortunate I am to live in this country, and to do what I do for a living, and to raise my daughters in peace and prosperity. But I also hear from plenty of people who don't have it nearly as good as I do. Plenty of people who are genuinely struggling in this country. Especially our veterans.

And every single veteran I've spoken to, they've all said pretty much the exact same thing: That this conversation we've started to have in the world of sports … whether it's been Colin (Kaepernick) kneeling, or entire NFL teams finding their own ways to show unity, or me saying that I didn't want to go to the White House -- it's the opposite of disrespectful to them.

A lot of them have said, that even if they don't totally agree with every position of every person, this is exactly the thing that they fought to preserve: the freedom of every American to express our struggles, our fears, our frustrations, and our dreams for a more equal society.

Curry went on to recount a recent conversation with a veteran, who brought up many issues that Curry wanted to bring to the forefront:

He (Michael, the veteran) happened to have served in Afghanistan -- and he told me about how much he had been through, both physically and mentally, just in trying to transition back into society, and into his daily life. He offered some advice to me, about how I could help to raise awareness about some of the serious issues that veterans are going through -- for example, with the Veterans Affairs medical system, and how its administration is broken. And he educated me on demographics -- telling me about how less than 1 percent of the population today serves in the military, which makes it a real struggle for veterans, as a political constituency, to get the representation that they need.

How come those issues never seem to be a trending topic?

We hear all the time on TV and social media about "supporting our troops." But it's not just about saluting them or thanking them for their service at the airport -- and it's definitely not just about how we observe the national anthem. Michael told me that our veterans need real action. They need real help with medical services, and access to jobs, and readjusting to society.

At almost every turn our conversation took, Michael found some common ground: from talking about how he's a Warriors fan (good, good, I like it), to -- way more importantly -- pointing out how most of the issues that military vets face at home are actually the same as the issues faced by a lot of America. Homelessness, unemployment, mental health and, yes, racial inequality -- those are the issues that our vets are facing. These are mostly universal issues, which are being felt in every town in America.

Starting this past Monday, the Warriors are hosting "Hoops for Troops" Week, which includes in-arena recognition and events to honor U.S. military service members and veterans. Monday's game against the Heat w was "Military Appreciation Night" and Saturday's game against the Philadelphia 76ers is "Hoops for Troops Night."