No one had ever kneeled or sat during a national anthem, as it is a sign of disrespect. However, police brutality and the racism reached a peak in America, so San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick decided to take action and protest by sitting down as it played.

He continued to kneel in the next couple of games as it was more ‘respectful’. As he continued to stand for what he believed in, by kneeling, then more players from all different sports started doing it.

Professional athletes are protesting against police brutality and racial injustice. In the past and present, police officers have disrespected and killed African Americans just because of their skin color. Police officer Michael Slager was tried for murder because he killed Walter Scott, an unarmed black man, during a traffic stop in North Charleston, South Carolina. He was not convicted.

This case shows that police officers shouldn’t judge someone by his or her appearance. Just like you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. The police have to respect all black lives and not treat them without respect.

In my opinion, kneeling is not disrespectful to the flag. People can do whatever they want. It’s a free country, and you have freedom of expression. These players are not giving hints that they are not proud to be an American. Just because a person kneels during a national anthem, does not mean that they do not support the people that serve our country. To show more respect to the flag, most players are kneeling instead of just sitting down.

No one should be scared to stand up against police brutality. The more people who realize the severe trouble in this world, the better it is since more criticism goes towards the bad cops.

These players are fighting for equality in our country. Cops treat people different because of skin color. Police officers shouldn’t view all African Americans as bad people because all lives matter. Some officers are very vicious when it comes to African Americans, who could be unarmed with no gun or knife and still bothered by the police

The players want to send out a message that cops are killing innocent people. Not only are they killing innocent lives, but they are murdering sons, daughters, fathers, and family members. The police officer’s job is to protect people, not to kill innocents.