Why This World War II Veteran Took A Knee In Support Of NFL Players

WILLARD, MO — A World War II veteran from Willard, Missouri has something in common with the dozens of NFL players who took a knee at Sunday's games. The 97-year-old man, John Middlemas, took a knee and posed for a photo that his grandson posted to Twitter, along with a caption explaining that the veteran supports NFL players who peacefully practice their First Amendment rights.

"My grandpa is 97 year-old WWII vet & Missouri farmer who wanted to join w/those who #TakeaKnee: "those kids have every right to protest," Brennan Gilmore captioned the photo. The post has been retweeted over 130,000 times since Sunday morning.

In a follow-up tweet, Gilmore noted that his grandfather has been an ally of the civil rights movement for many years.

"He's an amazing man always on the side of justice," Gilmore wrote.

NFL players protested Sunday in far greater numbers than usual after President Donald Trump attacked the league, saying those who choose to kneel as the national anthem plays before the start of a game should be fired. The attacks began Friday night and only intensified. Trump was still tweeting about the issue Monday morning.

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Pro athletes largely stood united against Trump's attacks on those practicing their First Amendment rights. Trump said his words had nothing to do with race but rather about respecting the country and the flag. However, the protests — started last year by former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick — were in response to racial injustice and symbolize taking a stand for the oppressed.

In an interview with The Springfield News-Leader, Middlemas said he wanted to communicate what he always told his grandkids and everybody else.

"When they'd go to bed at night, we'd tell the kids we wanted to be like Jesus," Middlemas told the paper.

Middlemas's message, which he hoped the world would get: You have to love everybody.

"We don't kill people. We want to make people live," Middlemas said.

>>>You can read Middlemas' full interview with the Springfield News-Leader here and their previous coverage of the local 2013 march to commemorate Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have A Dream" speech where Middlemas spoke.

Image of John Middlemas via Brennan Gilmore, used with permission