President Donald Trumps feud with professional athletes kneeling during the national anthem has reached a fever pitch, but its based on a premise that is ahistorical at best and dishonest at worst.

Despite Trumps claim to the contrary, kneeling during the national anthem as a protest against racism and police brutality honors veterans who fought for a country that abused them, and Trump is pushing a false narrative to silence a peaceful protest for police accountability.

People who say that kneeling is disrespectful to those who fought for our country are not speaking on behalf of all veterans, and despite what Trump likes to tweet, race is the most relevant factor in this discussion. When Colin Kaepernick refused to stand during the national anthem in 2016, he made it clear that he was protesting American racism.

I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color, Kaepernick said.

However, as of late Trump has twisted Kaepernicks protest against racism as a disgrace to veterans.

Ignoring race now just because Trump says so is intellectually dishonest, and like Kaepernick said, America has shown a consistent pattern of oppressing black people. Yet somehow, those who disagree with the protest on behalf of veterans ignore an obvious fact.

Veterans suffered oppression in the United States.

Throughout American history, black veterans put their lives on the line for their country only to return to a nation that treated them as subhuman.