Damien Leake (born August 12, 1952,[1] in The Bronx, New York City) is an American actor and world record-holding masters track and field athlete.
[3] On August 28, 1963, just days after his eleventh birthday, Leake joined his parents attending the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech.
When King was assassinated less than five years later, Leake began what has become a form of silent protest by remaining seated during the U.S. national anthem.
In 2016, a similar protest by Colin Kaepernick caught mass media attention and the ire of then President Trump.
On June 16, 2018, he set the world M65 record in the 100 meters, 12.31 +1.3 seconds, in Grass Valley, California.