Dein erstes Forum » character with Busch as Cole Trickle

SAN FRANCISCO -- The oldest Latino civil rights group in the United States opens every meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance, a tradition resulting from a long fight to prove Hispanics belong in this country.In the San Francisco Bay Area, a white father of two says he would never require his young daughters to recite the pledge to show their patriotism.And in North Dakota, Native American protesters whose ancestors were here long before there was a United States waved American flags as they fought a proposed pipeline near sacred tribal land. Some demonstrators flew the flag upside down as a distress symbol.San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernicks refusal to stand during The Star-Spangled Banner in protest against racial oppression and police brutality has brought to light deep and sometimes surprising differences in the way Americans view the flag, the national anthem and the pledge.The symbols, people say, inspire skepticism and heartbreak, pride and joy, sometimes all at once in the same person. Some minorities, in particular, have conflicted feelings about symbols honoring a country that has not always treated all people equally.The flag is important to us because we have so many relatives in the military, said Justin Poor Bear, a 38-year-old member of the Oglala Lakota tribe from Allen, South Dakota. There is also a lot of pain.Following Kaepernicks example, pro athletes and high school students across the country are taking a knee or linking arms during the national anthem before sporting events.The protests have raised questions of who gets to be called a patriot.Jason Pontius, a 46-year-old white resident of Alameda, California, said the U.S. of all countries should realize that blind devotion is not the American way. Sometimes when he drops off his second-grader at school, he sticks around while she recites the Pledge of Allegiance with her class. But he doesnt join in.What makes America great, he said, is that people have always challenged the idea of what America stands for.Yet there are organizations that embrace the flag precisely as a way to declare that their members, too, are Americans.The League of United Latin American Citizens -- the nations oldest Latino civil rights group, founded in Texas by World War I veterans -- has historically opened all its meetings with the pledge and a prayer similar to one George Washington is said to have recited.Dennis W. Montoya, the leagues state director in New Mexico, said the groups emphasis on American pride is connected with a long fight by Latinos to prove they belong in this country.If someone doesnt stand for the pledge at one of our meetings, that person will probably be kicked out, Montoya said. Its disrespecting LULACs rituals and traditions.African-Americans have been moved to create symbols that better reflect their history.The national anthem, for example, was written by a slave owner and contains a painful reference to slavery in its little-known third stanza. The NAACP dubbed Lift Evry Voice and Sing the black national anthem in 1919.The hymn is a staple of African American singers and is so important that the clergy member who gave the benediction at President Barack Obamas 2009 inauguration opened with lines from the song.After Kaepernick started his protest in August, C.C. Washington of Waco, Texas, read all the stanzas of The Star-Spangled Banner, including the one that refers derisively to slaves who fought for the British in exchange for their freedom.The 65-year-old African-American retiree -- fresh off visiting the Statue of Liberty last week -- felt betrayed.All this time, Ive been posting on Facebook: Respect our flag, respect our national anthem. Now its totally different, she said, choking up. Ill stand out of respect for the people standing next to me, not because I believe it.Poor Bear said he started looking at the anthem differently after he took a group of Oglala Lakota students to a minor-league hockey game last year. A man yelled slurs and sprayed the children with beer, incensed that one of them did not stand for the national anthem, Poor Bear said. The student had been putting batteries into a camera.So I still stand for the national anthem, Poor Bear said. But I no longer put my hand over my heart.Linda Tamura, a retired professor of education in Portland, Oregon, has no personal objections to the anthem or the flag, even though her family was among tens of thousands of Japanese-Americans put in internment camps by the U.S. government during World War II.Her father volunteered for the military, along with her uncle and other Japanese-American men who felt it was their duty. When she looks at the Stars and Stripes, she says, she feels pride, instilled in part by her parents, who more than anything wanted us to believe in our country.At the same time, she salutes the growing protest movement and hopes it triggers broader discussions about how to improve relations.Thats why my father was in the military. Thats why were part of America. Thats why we believe in America, she said. Because we have the right to say what we believe.---Contreras reported from Albuquerque, New Mexico. AP staff writer Deepti Hajela and stringer Rachelle Blidner contributed to this story from New York. Staff writers Errin Haines Whack contributed from Philadelphia; Jesse J. Holland and Noreen Nasir from Washington.---Follow Janie Har on Twitter at www.twitter.com/byjaniehar Cheap Nike Shoes From China . - Connor McDavid scored 53 seconds into overtime as the Erie Otters came from behind to defeat the visiting Guelph Storm 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. 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Rousey will put her perfect 8-0 record and hardware on the line against another undefeated fighter, 7-0 Sara McMann in the main event of UFC 170, which will be held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas Nevada on February 22nd.DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Matt Kenseth pulled away from traffic on the final restart of Friday nights Nationwide Series race, cruising to a comfortable win at Daytona International Speedway. The race was on pace to be one of the fastest in Daytona history until a late accident brought out a red-flag stoppage that lasted nearly 10 minutes. There were only two laps remaining when the race resumed and Kenseth paired up with defending Truck Series champion James Buescher on the restart. The two easily broke away from the pack, leaving everyone else racing for third place. Kenseth and Buescher werent challenged to the finish, with Kenseth taking the win and Buescher finishing second. It was a turn of events after the tandem of Sam Hornish Jr. and Joey Logano had dominated to lead 64 of the 101 laps. "It didnt matter who I was pushing or who was pushing me, we couldnt run with those two," Kenseth said of Logano and Hornish. "But with (Buescher) pushing me, we could. We had speed. So it was important to keep him with me. He did a really good job up getting us up to the lead and putting us in a position to try to win, so I wanted to make sure I stuck with him. "He did a really, really good job pushing there." Buescher stayed put once on Kenseths bumper. "We got together and went right to the front. I knew then I had to stay committed to him until the end of the race or as long as we could with the restarts," Buescher said. "He was the first car all weekend weve been able to push for a long period of time." Third went to Elliott Sadler, who picked up a $100,000 bonus from series sponsor Nationwide as the highest finishing driver in the "Dash 4 Cash" program.dddddddddddd The cooling box in Sadlers car broke right before the race, forcing him to finish on a steamy summer night with no air conditioning. "Its hot, but thats what we train for. Thats what we get ready for," said Sadler, who admitted to feeling nauseous while sitting in the car during the red flag. Kurt Busch finished fourth in a car designed with the beloved City Chevrolet paint scheme from the "Days of the Thunder" movie. He and the Phoenix Racing crew spent much of the race in character with Busch as Cole Trickle reciting Tom Cruises movie lines. "It was a great race, a lot of fun focusing on strategy, drafting partners and then switching over to the movie quotes and having fun," Busch said. "It was a shame we didnt get into Victory Lane. I wanted to have a foot race ... all the way down pit road to Victory Lane." The race was moving on at a rapid pace with just three cautions in the first 90 laps -- one was for debris, one was for fluid on the track and one was for Mike Wallaces stalled car. The Wallace caution set up a restart with seven laps to go, but racing halted when Travis Pastrana seemed to cut down on Cole Whitt, causing Whitt to turn Pastrana and trigger a multi-car accident. Caught in it was Jason White, who dropped to the grass after climbing from his crumpled car. White was tended to by emergency personnel in the grass, then walked to a waiting ambulance on his own. "Kind of took the breath out of me a little bit. It was a hard hit," he said. "Im feeling fine. Just got to get a little rest, Ill be fine tomorrow." ' ' '