Ten years on from the gesture that made him an icon and, in his own view, cost him his NFL career, Colin Kaepernick says he has no regrets. In his first interview with BBC Sport since he first took the knee, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback insists he would do it all again.
Colin Kaepernick (Credits: BBC Sport)
Colin Kaepernick Reflects on Taking the Knee 10 Years On
It was September 2016 when Kaepernick knelt during the US national anthem before a game, as a peaceful protest against racial injustice and police brutality. He had initially sat in protest, then switched to kneeling, a gesture he repeated before 11 regular-season games that year.
At the time, Kaepernick said he could not stand up for a flag representing a country that oppresses Black people and people of colour, adding that the issue was bigger than football and that it would have been selfish to look the other way. The stance made him a hero to many and a target for others, including critics who called the protest disrespectful to the military.
Speaking from New York, Kaepernick said he knew the protest could potentially cost him his career. He pointed to history, noting that athletes who take a stand often pay a price, and that broader movements have cost people far more, citing the assassinations of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. as proof that the consequences are real.
The Price Kaepernick Paid for His Protest
Despite leading the 49ers to the 2013 Super Bowl and throwing 16 touchdowns in his final season, Kaepernick never found another NFL team after opting out of his contract in March 2017. The club’s management later said he would have been released regardless, but Kaepernick believed team owners had conspired not to hire him because of his protests, and he eventually filed a grievance that ended in a financial settlement in 2019.
The backlash reached the highest levels of politics. Donald Trump, then a presidential candidate, called the act a terrible thing and unpatriotic, suggested Kaepernick should find another country to live in, and said players who refused to stand should be fired. The NFL later said it would fine teams whose players did not stand.
Kaepernick said he anticipated the reaction, but not who would show up for him, or who would work against him and against the movement. In 2019, the NFL arranged a private workout for him, but he chose not to attend, instead holding his own session elsewhere so media could be present. The league later admitted it had been wrong not to listen to players earlier, and encouraged everyone to speak out and peacefully protest.
Kaepernick on England Footballers Taking the Knee
One of the most striking chapters in the story came after the murder of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis in 2020, when taking the knee spread across sport as part of Black Lives Matter protests. England’s men’s and women’s football teams were among those to follow suit.
Kaepernick called that a surprising and humbling moment. He said he had thought about the protest going beyond the US, but seeing national teams go out and protest moved him, and he was happy they were doing it. He also stressed that there is still a lot of work to be done on racism in the UK and more broadly, calling it a global challenge that people are collectively fighting against.
Ten years on, Kaepernick’s message is unchanged: the protest was worth the price, the work is not finished, and he would do it again.
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Source: BBC Sport — read the full story there.
