Fencing might be a sport of play-fighting, but this fencer isn’t messing around.
American fencer and Olympian Race Imboden kneeled in protest of racism and gun violence issues while the national anthem played during his medal ceremony at the Pan American Games on Saturday. Imboden, a member of the gold-winning fencing team, explained his actions on Twitter, saying that the societal problems plaguing America “cut short” his pride for the country, so he kneeled to call attention to the issues.
Imboden’s actions come one week after a weekend of deadly shootings in America, including the El Paso shooting in which the shooter specifically targeted “Mexicans.” Imboden called out Donald Trump as “a president who spreads hate,” connecting his behavior to increasing racism and gun violence in American society. Read more…
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