Cub Scout, 10, kneels for Pledge of Allegiance at council meeting

'I ... took a knee against racial discrimination,' Liam Holmes told reporter

Scott Holmes/Twitter: @CScottHolmes

A 10-year-old boy from North Carolina took a knee during the Pledge of Allegiance at a City Council meeting earlier this week.

When asked about why he did it, the child provided a very thoughtful answer.

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"What I did was took a knee against racial discrimination, which is basically when people are mean to other people of different colors," Liam Holmes told the TV station WNCN, which was first to report the story.

The story -- and the praise from the mayor that followed, along with interviews from Liam's father -- have been making headlines ever since the meeting took place, which was Monday night in Durham, North Carolina.

“To the Scout who expressed his conscience by kneeling, we will say that we endorse and appreciate all expressions of conscience in the Durham City Council,” Mayor Steve Schewel said after it happened.

Liam is a part of Cub Scout pack 451, which led the pledge that evening. You can watch a video of it below.

Liam’s father, Scott Holmes, posted on Twitter after the meeting, and spoke with the media.

"When he did it, I was really surprised and also really proud of him," Scott Holmes said in a published report. Holmes works as a civil rights attorney and professor at North Carolina Central University.

The act of protest has been made popular by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who kneels based on his views of the country’s treatment of racial minorities.

Kaepernick hasn’t played in the NFL since 2016. In 2017, he filed a grievance against the league, saying the team owners have colluded to keep him out.