The first enlisted black Marine to both be selected for the Naval Academy Preparatory School and graduate the Naval Academy, Montel Williams served 22 years in both the Navy and the Marines before going on to start the Emmy-award winning Montel Williams Show, which ran for 17 seasons. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook.
Let’s be clear—I choose to stand for the national anthem. It’s my choice and I’m free to make it. But as someone who served 22 years in the military, I’m concerned about the backlash against athletes—professional, collegiate or high school—who kneel for the anthem to protest inequality in the criminal justice system.