President Obama defends Colin Kaepernick's right to protest

In recent weeks, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been declining to stand for the national anthem as a means of protesting violence against African Americans at the hands of law enforcement.

On Monday, President Obama defended the football player's right to do so.

At a press conference held in China, where Obama had been attending the G20 conference, he told reporters, "I gotta confess that I haven't been thinking about football while I've been over here and I haven't been follow[ing] this closely. But my understanding, at least, is that is he's exercising his constitutional right to make a statement."

The president also acknowledged that while it is no doubt difficult for some to watch, "...I don't doubt his sincerity. I think he cares about some real, legitimate issues that need to be talked about..."

He further noted, "I'd rather have young people who are engaged in the argument and trying to think through how they can be a part of our democratic process than people who are just sitting on the sidelines and not paying attention at all."

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