Missouri State Sen. Jamilah Nasheed made headlines recently when she decided to stay seated during the Pledge of Allegiance.
According to reports, the Missouri State Senate begins every session with a prayer and recitations of the pledge. Nasheed stood for the prayer but remained seated for the pledge—a symbol of “solidarity with the cause of injustice that Colin Kaepernick has shined a bright light upon.”
“I am not Anti-America and in fact, it is because I love this country that I take this stand,” she said in a prepared statement.
Nasheed cited the legislature’s refusal to mandate police body cameras, underfunding of Missouri’s public schools, the push for a voter ID law, refusal to expand access to Medicaid, and refusal to increase the minimum wage among other issues as her reason for sitting.
“Liberty and justice for all are not just words,” she said. “They are our country’s ideals.”
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