President Donald Trump’s executive order to ban people from certain countries from entering the United States created immediate backlash.
On Saturday night, protesters showed up at airports across the country to show support for those trying to enter the country and stand against Trump’s immigration ban (which a federal judge in New York attempted to put a halt to). Among the hashtags that protesters have latched onto in response to Trump’s ban is #RiseUp, in an effort to state the intent of the people to stand against Trump and others in political power making these decisions.
It’s a strong message. However, it also happens to be the slogan of the Atlanta Falcons, and since the NFL has a deal with Twitter where each team has it’s own hashtag, every time someone tweets #RiseUp a little Falcons logo pops up in the tweet. This has created a somewhat hilarious phenomenon, first noted by Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post, where if you search #RiseUp on Twitter you will get a mix of Falcons fans trying to get hyped for the Super Bowl and people protesting Donald Trump.
People are using a "Rise Up" hashtag to talk about refugee policy, and getting an Atlanta Falcons emoji pic.twitter.com/odoLQ1EuvV
— Dan Steinberg (@dcsportsbog) January 29, 2017
https://twitter.com/DouceOtis/status/825722015541841920
I have only been here 30+ years and I am deeply mourning the America I love so much. #resist #riseup https://t.co/AJSbXrBLy5
— Melissa de la Cruz (@MelissadelaCruz) January 29, 2017
https://twitter.com/WarWomensRights/status/825725363833729024
Today it's "Muslims." Tomorrow "illegal voters." Soon, "opponents" of the #TrumpRegime #RiseUp & #Resist, America before we are all banned
— Fernand R. Amandi (@AmandiOnAir) January 28, 2017
https://twitter.com/Ginafurlynn/status/825724618015199233
https://twitter.com/DeshawnDavis95/status/825723274797662209
There are tons of examples if you want to sift through them, and I’d love to know how Falcons owner Arthur Blank feels about this.
It would be extremely interesting to see an NFL team take a firm stand on an issue like this, and with their hashtag already in place the Falcons have an opportunity to speak out against the immigration ban if they were so moved. It would be made even more interesting since the Falcons play the Patriots, quarterbacked and coached by Trump supporters in Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, in the Super Bowl.