Ten years after Colin Kaepernick first took a knee during the national anthem, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback is speaking publicly about the fallout from his protest as he prepares to release his memoir, The Perilous Fight, on September 15.
In an interview with NBC News published Tuesday (September 1), Kaepernick said the NFL is “actively blackballing me” and other players who joined him in protesting racial injustice.
The 38-year-old, who hasn’t played in the NFL since the 2016 season, questioned why no team offered him even a workout despite previously leading the 49ers to a Super Bowl and an NFC Championship appearance.
Kaepernick said he realized his career was likely over not because of one specific moment, but because of what he described as a “culmination” of events. Kaepernick’s protest first drew widespread attention on August 26, 2016, when he remained seated during the national anthem before a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. He had also remained seated during earlier preseason games, but his protest had largely gone unnoticed.
Kaepernick said he was protesting police brutality, racial injustice and the oppression of people of color.
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color,” he told NFL Media after the August 26 game, according to Levi’s Stadium.
Kaepernick also said, “There are bodies in the street,” explaining why he felt he could not ignore the issue. He later switched from sitting to kneeling after speaking with Nate Boyer, a former NFL player and Army Green Beret. Boyer suggested kneeling as a way for Kaepernick to continue his protest while showing respect for the military, according to The Washington Post.
Kaepernick first knelt alongside teammate Eric Reid during the anthem on September 1, 2016, exactly ten years ago Tuesday (September 1).
The protest spread to athletes across multiple sports and levels of competition.
The Washington Post reported that as many as 200 NFL players took a knee at various points during the 2017 season.
After becoming a free agent, Kaepernick filed a grievance against the NFL in 2017, accusing its teams of colluding to keep him out of the league because of his protest. He reached a confidential settlement with the league in 2019, according to Levi’s Stadium.
A decade later, Kaepernick's upcoming book is described by its publisher as “equal parts memoir and manifesto,” examining the identity, sacrifice and personal cost behind the moment that changed his career.
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