rosemary connors: player protest. it's game day in the nfl and many are wondering what will happen on the field before kick-off. this morning, we'll dig deeper into the controversy of "taking the knee," with former player barrett brooks and eagles' insider, dave spadaro. male: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america. rosemary: flag flap, emotions run high when it comes to honoring the stars and stripes. today we'll discuss the surprising back story behind the pledge of allegiance. and why it was written in the first place. rosemary: off the books. if you plan to tailgate next time the eagles play at home, you could be breaking the law. today a city councilman explains and tells us about the other out-of-date laws he's pushing to throw out. male announcer: nbc10@issue starts now. male: i think that everyone should stand and support

the national anthem. female: i was so inspired by what i saw that i decided to jump in and join in. female: regardless of what you stand for, i think you should stand for your country. male: just don't make it a sunday afternoon demonstration. there's much more to this program than being out there on a sunday afternoon. what are you doing monday, what are you doing wednesday to help out the program that you are advocating? rosemary: plenty of people talking about this. good morning. i'm rosemary connors for nbc10@issue. that was just some of the local reaction after many nfl players protested before last sunday's games. the display on the field followed president trump's call to fire the players who take a knee during "the star-spangled banner." last week entire teams, including the eagles, locked arms during the national anthem. the steelers stayed off the field all together. others took a knee or raised their fists. earlier this week, eagles safety, malcolm jenkins, told cnn he believes the protest will continue today. malcolm jenkins: well, i think players will continue to do it because, you know, one thing i hear a lot from fans is,

you know, find a better way to do it, and not ask-- rosemary: this week, president trump continued to double-down on his comments, recently saying that nfl owners are, quote, "afraid of their players." the president insists it's all about respecting the flag and our country. joining in the conversation are former eagle and nbc sports philadelphia analyst, barrett brooks, and eagles insider, dave spadaro. thank you guys for being with us. both: thank you. rosemary: so barrett, i'll start with you. today at 1 o'clock when half the team in the nfls take the field, what are we gonna see? barrett brooks: i think we're gonna see much the same thing we saw last week. player--this is not an issue in which players are just gonna leave it alone. when kaepernick started this, it started to evolve. people are not comfortable right now. since they're not comfortable, it could--i don't want it to fade away later on, you know, he is not in the league right now. but now president trump has put us in the position now, all right, now we can use this social platform again to talk about the social injustice. so it just happens that it wanted to die down,

but the president ramped it up. dave spadaro: and that's the interesting part about it because the controversy has seemed to morph into a lacking respect for the country and the flag. and that's not the origin of what colin kaepernick and eric reid. there's a really fine piece, an op-ed piece, written this week by eric reid in "the new york times" that it was based on social injustices. there was a murder that hit close to eric reid's home and his heart, in louisiana. and so he felt the need to have--join colin kaepernick against police brutality and social injustice, not the american flag. not what america stands for. and somehow, it has morphed into the inaccurate portrayal of what this--these protests, silent protests, are all about. barrett: absolutely. rosemary: well, and that is how the president and some of his supporters are viewing this demonstration and certainly they've been speaking out on it. let's take a listen. president trump: you cannot have people disrespecting our

national anthem, our flag, or our country and that's what they're doing. female: i personally believe, like, this protest that they're having, so, you know, so to speak, is not one that you should be having against the flag, against the-- and against the national anthem. rosemary: so, as you heard, they're saying this is against the flag. it's against the national anthem. but-- dave: it's not. they--it's not. that is not the intent of these very peaceful, well-thought-out, and i think malcolm jenkins explained it earlier, you know, very provocative moments. i mean, this is not about "we don't love america. we don't support america." the players are saying, "we stand united in the cause against social injustice." and that's the fact. so those who are betraying it in another light, i can't speak to why they're doing that, but they're inaccurate. rosemary: some say it's about race and, in fact, we got a bit of that as we talked to people on--during last week's eagles game so we're gonna take a quick listen,

then we'll get to that. melissa robinson: we knew his history of white supremacy but after he took office, he then came for the mexicans. he then came for the muslims. he then came for the daca students. now he's going after black athletes. president trump: this has nothing to do with race. i've never said anything about race. this has nothing to do with race or anything else. this has to do with respect for our country and respect for our flag. rosemary: is this one big target on race? barrett: you know, i don't think it's one big target on a race. the issue is racially motivated in the aspect that, you know, i'm from st. louis and, being from st. louis, i used to have to walk through ferguson to go to basketball practice. i'm 12 years old. rosemary: ferguson, missouri, where all of the protests broke out following the-- barrett: exactly. so i'm walking to practice, 12 years old. there's 6 of us, 7 o'clock in the morning, walking to practice. my parents couldn't afford to take me to practice, they didn't have a car. so i'm walking to practice.

as i'm walking to practice, we get pulled over. and probably about 60 yards in front of me, there's some beer cans, some beer bottles, that we're walking towards. we get arrested for--saying we were the ones drinking that. it was social profiling back then and we got arrested. although it's expunged from our record, that could have really hurt me in the aspect it could have ruined my career. here i am, playing in the nfl, now i work for nbc. it could have erased a lot of that, because that could have been on my record. that's something that, you know, that president trump can't see. he can't see anything past being in trump towers or trump whatever. he doesn't see that. he doesn't vibe with the regular person, you know? he doesn't vibe with people that have to go through these social injustices. so i think he needs to have more attentive ear on what we're talking about as far as why they're protesting, as opposed to just pointing fingers. rosemary: do you think it's a--an easy way to describe what's happening, that it-- barrett: there can't be an easy way because it's not an easy issue. somebody has to be uncomfortable for change to happen.

these players have made themselves very uncomfortable because they understand the social injustices are going on right now. so they're uncomfortable. they're trying to make others uncomfortable so they can see and change things. there's nothing gonna happen-- if you protest in a closet, nobody sees it. you have to use the platform that you have in order to get people to hear and listen to the things that you go through every day. he's not looking out the--president trump is not looking out the same window as my people are looking through. dave: and i'd like to actually hear a dialog or see some statistics, has it worked? has there been more awareness to social injustice? has police brutality, the number of cases dropped? how effective has this been? it's certainly been effective to the point where everybody's talking about it. everybody has a reaction. but the intent was to cause change. so i'd like to have an intelligent dialog somewhere that has that conversation. has it made--has it changed? please, i hope it has. i hope it has been addressed properly within police departments and, look, we all support the police.

we believe in a structured environment, a lawful environment, but there--and so this has--the good news is in this conversation we're talking about social injustice, racial equality, not the idea of the flag being disrespected. barrett: yeah, yeah, our country is one that's we're afforded this opportunity to really go out and show, yes, you know, we can do this. this is a part of our rights to be able to protest peacefully. that's a part of our rights. for the president to say that, you know, that you can't do that, that's against the law. it's really against the law. dave: those who packed lincoln financial field last sunday and who were part of the pre-game festivities, including the fly-over, the salute to the military which is very important to the philadelphia eagles and to the nfl, who were there for the national anthem, and then who witnessed a game that this was emotional incredible ending game, they left feeling good about being there.

so, to me, that was the story. rosemary: and arguably, being american? dave: and being american and having the opportunity to witness such a grand event next to people of all socio and economic levels and race and gender and being arm in arm in rooting for one thing, the philadelphia eagles to winning. it's entertainment so, you know, for the players, i give them kudos for following the lead of colin kaepernick and eric reid in san francisco and for doing it peacefully and for doing it intelligently and for furthering the dialog that is now being lost in all the conversation, the inaccurate portrayal of why this movement was started. it is not to discredit the flag or show a lack of respect to america. it is to address the idea of racial inequality and police brutality. rosemary: final thought: there are certainly people out there and we've heard some of that sound earlier in this interview from people who do see it that way. they see it as a sign of disrespect. is this going to hurt the nfl moving forward? dave: could it hurt the league? certainly.

anything can--we've seen things snowball in this country, but i believe that at the end of the day everybody will be rational about it, intelligent about it, and support the idea of freedom of speech. rosemary: barrett, last word? barrett: i will say this. i'm gonna respect everybody's opinion on what they have to do but i don't think it's gonna hurt players, i don't think it's gonna hurt the nfl. showing that this is a bridge that bridges people together. that's what the nfl is used for. it's what sports is used for. and hopeful we get people on the same page as us to try to address these social issues that, even though you might not be experiencing them, there are people experiencing these social injustices. so that's what we're trying to get people to understand. rosemary: like they may not have been walking to practice that day through ferguson. barrett: exactly. at 12 years old and going to aau practice and having to deal with those types of issues. dave: well, if there are people who deny that there's racism or social injustice out there, that's a whole different conversation. rosemary: it is, and a big conversation that we're gonna continue to have here on nbc10.

barrett brooks and dave spadaro, thank you so much for being with us and for your insight. dave: thanks, rosemary. rosemary: next on nbc10@issue we'll tell you how this disturbing salute is linked to the pledge of allegiance. that and other facts about honoring the flag that may surprise you.

rosemary: with so much attention on the way we honor the flag, we decided to ask a local historian for some background on the pledge of allegiance. for example, did you know that the pledge was written to honor christopher columbus's arrival to north america? joining me now is historian, dr. lee arnold. he's the senior director and chief operating officer of the library and collections for the historical society of pennsylvania. dr. arnold, thanks for being with us. lee arnold: glad to be here. thank you. rosemary: so first, let's begin with a big surprise for a lot of people. the original way we saluted the flag. lee: right, so as you mentioned, that the way we saluted the flag was a very common way in the late 1800s, early 1900s, which unfortunately,

people refer to as the nazi salute. but it was the way everyone saluted the flag. it was a very proper way to do it with your hand upright. but then, of course, the nazis, when they came to power, they also used that gesture and then it suddenly became something you didn't want to emulate: a nazi. and so in 1942 the government created what's called the flag code, which is the way that they suggest that you salute the flag which is your hand over your heart, not up in the air like a nazi. rosemary: and you mentioned the flag code. there are some rules, so to speak. not binding rules but strong suggestions in terms of honoring the flag. we'll get to that in a moment. in terms of the pledge of allegiance, it was written in the first place as a marketing tool to sell flags. lee: yes, you wanted the pledge of allegiance in order--it was--you said, it was started around the time of the world's fair in chicago and the 400th anniversary of columbus's discovering america and it was really meant a way to have

immigrants become more patriotic. and so that's one of the things they did to really--it was an immigrant assimilation tool. and it progressed. it changed over the years and our latest version was really adopted in 1954 with the word "under god." before that, that word was not in the wording. rosemary: in terms of "the star-spangled banner," which is prompting this conversation this morning. it's interesting, i know this through family lore, from my grandmother who was a high school sports reporter for the philly "inquirer," that really it's saying that the--singing "the star-spangled banner" was something that was done at sporting events during the wartime, during wartime. lee: it absolutely was because it wasn't--and, of course, "the star-spangled banner," the words were written in 1814 but it wasn't adopted as the national anthem until 1931. and then having it being popularized at sporting events is that, you're right, it really was sort of as a way

of patriotism. rosemary: so in terms of this code, as we mentioned, what are the rules about the pledge? must we say it? lee: right, so the pledge itself, you have the two rules with the flag code. one is about the flag itself, which is really very interesting. and then also about the pledge. and it says, really, you don't have to do, say, anything in the sense of there is no rules for not saying the pledge of allegiance or for sitting or kneeling or anything like that. it's just suggested. but really, what you're doing is you're making sure that your hand is placed over your heart and things like that in order just to really have it be a bit more uniform. but there isn't any things. but there's a lot of rules for the flag itself, about that. it's not to be--supposed to be used for any kind of advertising at all. it's not supposed to be on athletic wear. rosemary: which we have seen. lee: absolutely. it's not supposed to be on a cardboard box or embroidered on a pillow or a cushion. rosemary: we've seen both.

lee: that's right. and what i find is sort of interesting about both the national anthem and about saying the pledge and the flag, is that people, unfortunately, during this controversial time, are so upset about these players doing one thing yet they turn a blind eye to all the other things that the code actually says you shouldn't be doing. i remember i was at the state fair in wisconsin once and the band started to play "america the beautiful" and people were standing up and putting their hand over their heart. and i thought, "oh my god, if you're so patriotic, how do you know that 'america the beautiful' is not the national anthem," you know? if you really claim to be patriotic, you should know these things, right? so people have sort of selective memory or selective enforcement of what they consider patriotism. rosemary: well, and technically, in terms of the code, you can't display a flag on the ground which we see frequently at sporting events as large american flags are unfurled before the fans. lee: that's right, definitely. or even if you see after, like, often a track and field runner

after they win, like at the olympics, they will drape their shoulders with the american flag and maybe run around a bit. you're not supposed to do that either. it's not supposed to be used as drapery or any kind of apparel. and yet everyone thinks that's okay and that's patriotic. but simply kneeling during the showing of the flag or the national anthem, somehow they think that's unpatriotic. there are other things going on there that i think this country needs to grapple with. rosemary: i may be putting you on the spot here. is there any other time in our country's history that you can think of where there has been some kind of a controversy related to the pledge of allegiance or "the star-spangled banner"? lee: right, well, certainly during the 1960s at the olympics in mexico city when the people looking for, you know, black empowerment held up their fist while--after when they were awarded their medals ceremony. that certainly was a time. and then, of course, during the vietnam war you had people burning the flag and ripping up their draft cards. the only penalty that the flag code outlines from 1942 is if

you deface or mutilate a flag. nothing about saying the allegiance or standing up or hand over their heart. but even that has been overturned by the supreme court as being unconstitutional. so even though it's in the flag code, it's not enforced because the supreme court said that it's a form of free speech. rosemary: one last thought. religious organizations that don't say the pledge, even religious organizations that have some of their roots in philadelphia. lee: absolutely. well, certainly, the jehovah's witnesses will not say a pledge. i remember growing up in grade school and we'd have to stand up and say the pledge of allegiance and i always remembered one student just stood up and just had his hands to his side and didn't say anything, and i thought, "oh." and someone told me, "he's a jehovah's witness." there were other religious groups such as quakers where they don't take an oath. so they--because they believe that's sort of against their religion as well. so there are some fine lines between religious organizations that think that, you know, being forced to make some sort of commitment like this really is against their faith.

and of course, agnostics and humanists actually don't like saying the pledge of allegiance because of it saying, "under god." rosemary: and sort of the opposite, for quakers, the idea that maybe you're putting your country before your god. lee: well, absolutely, absolutely. and i think that's one of the reasons that the jehovah's witnesses don't do that either. and, you know, and we need to be respectful of that. and then you can think, "well, if that's okay, right, 'cause you say, 'okay, well, that's your belief,' then why isn't it not okay to do something else," or another form of thing. rosemary: it's an ongoing conversation. it is. historian, dr. lee arnold, thank you so much for being with us. really appreciate it. lee: thank you. pleasure to be here. rosemary: coming up next, it's hard for some to imagine tackling an eagles game without tailgating but if you tailgate in a city-owned lot, you are breaking the law. next, meet the man who wants to bench that law and other out-of-date rules in philly.

after 8 years of chris christie, is kim guadagno the change new jersey really needs? guadagno is christie's hand-picked successor. says she's "proud to be part of the christie administration." guadagno was chris christie's right hand as our schools came under attack, critical services were underfunded, and our credit rating was downgraded...11 times. from the bridge to the beach, we've seen it all, and we've had enough. kim guadagno isn't the change we need.

kim guadagno isn't rosemary: tailgating in city-owned parking lots,

a ban on the sale of pagers to minors, and a requirement that couples see a doctor before they marry. they are all laws on the books right now in philadelphia. a city councilman says, "it's time to get rid of them." joining me now is philadelphia councilman at large, derek green. thanks so much for being with us, councilman green. derek green: no problem. thank you for the opportunity. rosemary: so "out-of-date"? fair way to describe these rules on the books in philly? derek: yeah, these are some bills that we have on the books, that we've had for a number of years and in march of this year, we formed a special committee for regulatory reform and review, really trying to encourage and promote the business climate in the city of philadelphia. but also look at legislation that we have in a code. it might sound--i know it sounds crazy that you have legislators trying to take legislation out of the code but really what we're trying to do is help the business climate in the city of philadelphia and get rid of legislation that is really not effectual anymore. rosemary: a lot happening for the city of philadelphia. in fact, just a few days ago, a delegation, so to speak, from the city left for seattle to make their pitch to amazon, "come here." derek: absolutely.

i think philadelphia's very primed to be the hq2 for amazon. rosemary: i'm assuming that was--that pun was on purpose. derek: absolutely. in fact, we do a weekly call to kind of give a status update for city council members and other city officials to talk about the progress we're making on the amazon proposal. the proposal's due october 19 and i think we're really primed. and the fact that members of the city administration are going to seattle to let them know we're very interested in amazon coming to the city of philadelphia and let them know all the great benefits that we have here in the city. rosemary: this ties in to your push about making it a business-friendly place to be. derek: absolutely. and having both the private sector, the public sector, a lot of different institutions, developers, all coming together to really push to amazon and let them know that philadelphia is open for business. rosemary: i'm not sure if you can reveal any of the specific details but a lot of people are talking, "okay, where would you put a $5 billion facility that would house 50,000 employees?" derek: well, the three main locations we're looking at: the navy yard and the navy yard has 1100 square feet.

and we also have ucity square which is a new development being developed by the science center. and we also have schuylkill yards which is also right in the 30th street area which provides great opportunities, tax benefits, and a great opportunity for amazon to come to philadelphia and grow and help the city grow as well. rosemary: one of the stipulations for amazon was also access to public transportation for all of these potential employees to be able to get to and from the facility. derek: absolutely, if you look at the navy yards, it's not that far from the broad street line by the sports complex. both schuylkill yards and ucity square are also right by 30th street, so it's easy access to 30th street station, amtrak, and not far from the airport as well. rosemary: city councilman at large, derek green, thanks so much for coming in. appreciate it.

announcer: this is nbc10@issue.: news facing an epidemic fueled by opioid painkillers. vanessa: we want you to know that recovery from addiction is possible, but you need to know the signs. they can be hard to spot: social withdrawal, financial problems, irritability. christie: if you see these signs occurring together or suddenly, you may have cause for concern. the signs you spot today... vanessa: ...could save a loved one tomorrow. christie: call 844 reach nj or visit reachnj.gov.

rosemary: that's it for this edition of nbc10@issue. thanks for joining us. have a great sunday. go eagles. ♪

nbc sports, home of the olympic games, the fedex cup playoffs, premier league, the nascar playoffs, prime time's number one show, "sunday night football" and super bowl 52, on nbc. >> welcome to the u.s. bank nbc sports report. >> what a day, just across the hudson from manhattan in jersey city, u.s., on the verge of a historic win over the international team. 12 singles matches straight ahead here at the presidents cup. hi again everyone. jimmy roberts from liberty national, we'll get you right out to the course in a moment.