The act of kneeling before a person or object has
traditionally been interpreted as a sign of respect, obedience, or
supplication.
When an athlete kneels during our National Anthem, there are
all too many who have chosen to read the opposite meaning into the gesture and
claim it is disrespectful.
To counter these errant claims, the athletes could kneel
just before or just after the anthem and stand during the anthem.
Only the most prejudiced people could then interpret the
kneeling the wrong way.
