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A Buffalo Bills stadium employee quit his job after several of the teams players kneeled during the national anthem in response to strong remarks made by Donald Trump over the weekend.
Erich Nikischer, who worked at New Era Field for nearly 30 years, spoke to local Buffalo TV station WGRZ-TV and says that he quit as soon as the anthem ended after he saw the Bills players kneeling.
Via NGRZ
“I waited until the National Anthem ended, I took off my shirt, threw my Bills hat on the ground, walked out,” Nikischer said in a sit-down interview with Channel 2 at his West Seneca home.
Nikischer says he has no problem with players protesting before the National Anthem. It’s when the kneeling continued into the song that strong feelings took over.
“During the National Anthem…the song that is about our country, our veterans that fight and die for us, it’s just something I feel you shouldn’t disrespect that way,” he said. “I believe people have the right to protest; I just don’t believe that’s the proper venue for it.”
He’s not alone in that latter sentiment. Safety Jordan Poyer’s fiancé says that’s how the couple feels, and that Saturday night, they decided he wouldn’t partake in an on the field protest.
“I feel like there’s a certain time or place where you should make a stand for something, and we both agree that it’s not in your work force, your work field,” Rachel Bush said. “So yeah, I agree there’s something that should be done, but we both mutually don’t agree that it should be done during their work…during their football season.”
Nikischer said it was a hard decision, and that he will miss those he worked with.
“I will never step foot in the that place again, I will never watch an NFL football game again until this ends,” Nikischer said.