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Colin Kaepernick reflects on his 2016 National Anthem protest
In an exclusive interview with NBC News’ Rohan Nadkarni, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback reflected on the moment that made him one of the most recognizable figures in the fight against racial injustice.
Kaepernick says the protest was never simply about football or the national anthem. It was about drawing attention to racism and police brutality that he felt could no longer be ignored.
It Started With Sitting
Kaepernick's protest actually began quietly.
On Aug. 14, 2016, he sat on the bench during the national anthem before a preseason game. He later explained that he had been deeply affected by reports of police violence and had spent time reading about Black liberation and racial injustice while recovering from surgeries.
On Sept. 1, he and teammate Eric Reid took a knee during the anthem.
Kaepernick now reveals that Reid was the person who suggested kneeling as an alternative to sitting. The gesture quickly became a defining image of athlete activism.
The Backlash Was Immediate
Kaepernick said he was unprepared for just how intense the reaction would become.
Fans burned his jerseys. Critics accused him of disrespecting the American flag and the military, while political figures publicly condemned his decision.
But Kaepernick believes much of the discussion surrounding his protest missed the point.
He told NBC News that criticism of the method became a way of distracting from the issue he was trying to raise — the treatment of Black Americans and concerns over police violence.
“Oftentimes we hear a lot of the side of the pushback,” Kaepernick said, while arguing that the response within the communities he was advocating for was often overlooked.
His NFL Career Never Recovered
Kaepernick played his final NFL season in 2016.
After the season, he became a free agent and ultimately never returned to the league. In 2017, he filed a grievance against the NFL, accusing team owners of colluding to keep him from being signed. The case was settled in 2019.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has repeatedly denied that Kaepernick was blackballed.
Kaepernick, however, remains convinced that his protest cost him his football career. He told NBC News that he has not watched an NFL game since he left the league, saying he does not want to support an organization he believes continues to target him and other protesting players.
A Protest That Changed Sports
What began with one quarterback sitting during an anthem eventually spread across professional sports and became part of a much larger national conversation.
Other NFL players joined Kaepernick and Reid, while athletes in the NBA, WNBA and other sports adopted similar forms of protest.
The NFL eventually introduced initiatives focused on racial equality and social justice, including its Inspire Change program and changes to its Rooney Rule.
Kaepernick says, however, that symbolic gestures are not enough.
He continues to question whether institutions are taking meaningful action behind messages such as “End Racism.”
“Unfinished Business”
Now 38 and a father, Kaepernick says becoming a parent has given him an even greater sense of responsibility.
His new memoir, “The Perilous Fight,” is scheduled for release Sept. 15. In it, he revisits the protest, the backlash that followed and the personal and professional consequences that came with it.
A decade later, Kaepernick says he still has work to do.
His football career may be over, but the cause that led him to take a knee remains central to his life — and he wants his daughter and the next generation to understand that standing up for what you believe in can come with a cost, but that does not necessarily make the fight unworthy.
Source: NBC News
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