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KSU cheerleaders protest anthem
KSU
Five Kennesaw State University cheerleaders take a knee during the national anthem prior to a Sept. 30 game against North Greenville, in Kennesaw, Ga. - photo by Associated Press
KENNESAW, Ga. — Five cheerleaders at a college in Georgia are vowing to kneel in the stadium tunnel when the national anthem is played at Saturday's homecoming game, moved off the field by their university after an earlier protest.The so-called Kennesaw Five will kneel outside the view of fans, cheerleader Shlondra Young said said in an interview Monday. Young said she believes they are being "purposely hidden" from public view when the Kennesaw State Owls host Gardner-Webb University of North Carolina."I feel as though it was an attempt to silence us," she said. "But even though they are moving us, we will not be silenced."The cheerleaders said they closely watched a national debate over NFL players kneeling during the anthem, adding they prayed before kneeling before a college game Sept. 30.The decision to move the cheerleaders off field was made by the school's athletic department, which meets after each game "to determine how best to enhance the game day atmosphere," school spokeswoman Tammy DeMel said in a statement Monday to The Associated Press.