Say this about San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick: His national-anthem protest drew a lot of attention, from all corners.

At a ceremony in Hawaii on Wednesday to mark the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, U.S. Pacific Command Commander Adm. Harry Harris made a remark that was clearly about the quarterback.

“You can bet that the men and women we honor today – and those who died that fateful morning 75 years ago – never took a knee and never failed to stand whenever they heard our national anthem being played,” Harris said, according to the Associated Press.

US admiral: Those honored at Pearl Harbor 75th anniversary "never took a knee" when they heard national anthem https://t.co/KafhXQdvfd pic.twitter.com/XzYZlB67BF — AP West Region (@APWestRegion) December 7, 2016





The AP reported that comment drew “a lengthy standing ovation from the crowd, with people whistling and hooting.”

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Kaepernick started to kneel for the national anthem this preseason, and said he was doing so to bring attention to racial injustice and police brutality.

The story became one of the biggest in the NFL in recent years. Other NFL players started to also take a knee during the anthem, or join the protest in other ways. The attention to Kaepernick’s protest has died down in recent weeks, though it kicked up again when Kaepernick’s decision to wear a shirt with the late Fidel Castro on it was questioned.

Even during an important remembrance of one of the biggest and most tragic days in American history, Kaepernick’s protest came up. And it drew another strong reaction.

Colin Kaepernick has carried on a national anthem protest all season. (AP) More

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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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