The National Anthem: played before a sporting event, wrote by Francis Scott Key in 1814, a tribute to our country. We "all rise for the National Anthem". But recently, as I'm sure you have seen in the news and some football games, not everyone has been rising.

The nation has been in an uproar about this. We value our National Anthem and people have given Marshall (pictured above) a lot of negative feedback. One of the responses on Twitter were: "U have no purpose on earth. All you can do is catch a ball. Congratulations. So can my 6 year old." Another said: "why don't you go play football in another country and take @Kapernick7 (referring to Colin Kapernick, who was the first to kneel at another football game, also Marshall's college roommate) with you."

But why?

When Marshall was asked why he did it, he replied with: “I’m not against the military. I’m not against the police or America. I’m just against social injustice." He is even going to donate to groups against social injustice and also to veteran groups.

Athletes are not the only people taking a seat during the National Anthem. A U.S. Navy Soldier took her seat during the anthem. Janaye Ervin, who has been serving in the Navy since 2008, stated: "I feel like a hypocrite, singing about "land of the free" when, I know that only applies to some Americans. I will gladly stand again, when ALL AMERICANS are afforded the same freedom." Because of using her freedom of speech, she lost her security clearance and was threatened with jail time by the Navy for "failing to obey a lawful order."

In America, our Constitution gave us the freedom of speech. Clearly, this is exactly what people are doing. But this is one of the more recent times where it is being used "against America". That is the reason why people are angry and in an uproar about this. The people that are taking a knee during the anthem are representing what they believe in and the trend is to make America equal again. If anyone disagrees and believes this country is equal between all races and people, they need a reality check.

The National Anthem that we sing is only a small portion of the full version wrote by Key. One of the verses talks about the blood of the slaves that fought for Brittian, in an attempt to win their freedom, will wash away the "pollution of the British invaders." The full verse is:

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore,
That the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion
A home and a Country should leave us no more?
Their blood has wash’d out their foul footstep’s pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Can we understand where some opposition to our National Anthem is coming from? This is the land of the free and yet, here we are, still creating these boundaries between whites and blacks.

So, if you ask me, take your knee and stand for what you believe in. There are no limitations to your freedom of speech. Use it with pride and use it towards something that means something.