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Steel City Sports in Lancaster County loses business after National Anthem controversy

EAST LAMPETER TOWNSHIP, LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — After most of the Pittsburgh Steelers players opted to stay off the field during the national anthem befor...

EAST LAMPETER TOWNSHIP, LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. -- After most of the Pittsburgh Steelers players opted to stay off the field during the national anthem before Sunday's game, one Lancaster County business is struggling to sell the team's memorabilia.

Steel City Sports in East Lampeter Township bleeds black and yellow and everything Pittsburgh. It's a top spot for fans looking for sports memorabilia in Lancaster County.

"People come in here for their slice of hometown Pittsburgh," said owner, Susan Moedinger.

Business is hurting, though. Moedinger says profits are down 60 percent compared to this time last year, and she blames the recent decision by Steelers' football players not to participate in the national anthem Sunday at Chicago.

"Monday morning, we began to get calls and people stopping in to say they will never shop in my store again because they were boycotting the Steelers, the NFL," she said. "I'd say potentially they're hurting Steel City Sports, me and my family. It's a small business, veteran owned."

The business's social media pages have received nasty messages as well. Although Moedinger's Pittsburgh born and bred, she says she enjoys a good debate... football related or not.

"It doesn't hurt me to hear the opinions. Heck, we trash talk around here all the time about our teams," she said.

Moedinger says Steel City will remain a place where people are free to have an opinion.

"Every man and woman who has served this country has done it to keep us free to express our views, free to live in a country where this is tolerated, and we're not thrown in jail because we have an opposing opinion," she added.

She placed free American flags next to the register to show what else the business supports.

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