Kennesaw State University cheerleader suing for First Amendment rights violations after kneeling during national anthem

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Sunday, September 23, 2018
Cheerleader who knelt during singing of national anthem is suing University
Cheerleader who knelt during singing of national anthem is suing University. Rick Williams reports during Action News at 5 p.m. on September 19, 2018.

KENNESAW, Georgia -- A cheerleader is suing her university saying the school in Georgia violated her first amendment rights.

Tommia Dean and four other cheerleaders at Kennesaw State University took a knee during the national anthem last season.

This threw the school into the national spotlight, and the cheerleaders spent the next few games in the field tunnel when the anthem played.

Dean didn't make the squad this year, and in a federal lawsuit she filed on Sept. 5, she said the experience caused her to suffer an increase in migraine headaches and emotional distress.

Dean spoke out during an appearance on The View.

"I never want to come across as disrespectful to the military," Dean said. "That's not what this about. It is simply about standing up for police brutality against minorities, that's simply it. For many people who are out there in the military, I would never want to disrespect them. It's honorable what people do in the military. You're standing up for your country which is amazing."

The university says it can't comment on pending litigation.