The National Football League opens its season in cities across the United States this weekend. Fans will be cheering for their favorite teams and players during games Sunday and Monday. But many people will also be paying attention to what happens before the game. America’s national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner,” is played before many sporting events in the U.S. This has been the case for about 100 years. In most cases, fans and players stand up, look toward the flag, and sing the words to the song. But recently, one player has not done that. Colin Kaepernick is a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. Kaepernick did not stand for the anthem before the San Francisco game on August 26. The game was an exhibition. The results do not count toward the teams’ standings. Colin Kaepernick said he chose not to stand as protest. He said he was objecting to the way black people and people of color are treated in the United States.
