Turn on any TV, open a newspaper or scroll through your Twitter feed and odds are you will come across some celebrity or athlete on bended knee during the national anthem. Ever since Colin Kaepernick first took to his knee, there has been a heated debate swirling around the issue. Is it a silent protest against the seemingly disregarded escalation of violence and mistreatment of black Americans? Or is it a blatant show of disrespect for the service men and women who have courageously died fighting for the freedom we enjoy? I don’t have the answer. I have never served in the military and although I am multiracial, I have not personally been the victim of police brutality. So before I, or you, decide whether or not taking a knee during the playing of the national anthem is the appropriate forum, I figured a little background was in order.