I've never thought kneeling during anthems is an especially appropriate way to express protest. The act seems sacrilegious -- isn't kneeling itself a sign of piety (kneeling during a prayer) or subservience (kneeling to monarch)?
I don't agree with what they are doing, but that is the point. Kneeling draws attention to their cause, and the anthem is just a platform to do it. I think that's why Kaepernick went from sitting on a bench to kneeling in the first place, because he was told that sitting was disrespectful.
