Thursday 19 October 2017 18:47, UK
Nobel Peace Prize winner Jody Williams has backed "hero" Colin Kaepernick's national anthem protest and said she would "take a knee" with him.
The former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, who is without a team and recently filed a grievance against the NFL, first refused to stand for the anthem last season in protest at racial inequality in the United States.
Other players have since followed suit, with the number reaching three figures in week three of the 2017 season in the wake of comments from US President Donald Trump, who urged team owners to fire anyone he saw as failing to respect the anthem by standing.
Earlier this week, Trump said the failure of owners to act and force players to stand was showing disrespect to the entire country but Williams, who won the Peace Prize in 1997 for her work in banning the use of landmines, put her support firmly behind Kaepernick.
Speaking to CBS, she said: "Important figures have decided that they will use their fame to make a difference. And that also empowers the not-so famous to stand up and make a difference. I think it's terrific. I think it's long overdue.
"Despite the fact that, you know, Muhammad Ali - going to jail instead of going to war, and the two athletes in the Olympics raising their fists - famous people have done it before, but not to this extreme.
"Not being a sports junkie, I don't follow the ins and outs of the issue - but I do want to say that I do think in part it is a backlash because he has the courage to stand up, and take a knee to make a statement.
"I wish I could take a knee with Kaepernick.
"When I first saw that he took a knee, I [thought], 'Oh, yes! If I could only go to a football game and take a knee with him, I would be so proud.' Whether he ever plays football again, the man has made a statement that affects our culture. And for that alone, he is a hero."
