Failed Senate candidate Beto O’Rourke has invited three young black athletes who protested the national anthem as guests to the Democrat debate on Tuesday.
Four high school football players at Lansing Catholic High School created a local controversy in Michigan after they were benched for taking a knee during the anthem in 2017.
Athletes Kabbalah Richards, Michael Lynn III, Matthew Abdullah and RoJe Williams said they were inspired by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick to protest the national anthem.
Three of the four athletes will attend the debate, as Richards is at college.
Speaking to the Associated Press, O’Rourke said that the athletes “have served their community in one of the most American ways possible.”
O’Rourke’s invitation is an attempt to remind Democrats the moment that the former Texas Senate candidate’s video defending the right to protest went viral, making him a national political sensation.
“I can think of nothing more American than to peacefully stand up or take a knee for your rights anytime, anywhere or anyplace,” O’Rourke said at a 2018 campaign event in Texas.
The video from NowThis earned 44 million views across multiple platforms at the time 2018, according to a spokesperson speaking to The Hill.
Talkshow show Ellen DeGeneres featured O’Rourke’s response on her show helping him propel his campaign to a national level.
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