Kyle Rosenstock

Writing and Research

Ms. DeWinne
13 October 2020

COLIN KAEPERNICK LIFE OF

CONSEQUENCE
COLIN KAEPERNICK

Colin Kaepernick is an NFL quarterback and an

American civil rights activist. After playing six
season with the San Francisco 49ers, Kaepernick
took a stand and decided to kneel during the
National Anthem. He kneeled to protest racial
inequality and the oppression of black people in
America. It is likely that this caused him to not be
resigned by the 49ers, and he has been a free agent
for the past four years. Colin Kaepernick sacrificed
his career in order to respectfully protest for what he
believed in and that is why he lives a life of
consequence.
HIS PROTEST

The first time that Colin Kaepernick kneeled was during a pre-season game on August14,
2016, and he continued to kneel before his games for the rest of the season. “I am not going
to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of
color. To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the
other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away
with murder”(Kaepernick).
GAINING ATTENTION

Throughout one of his games he was booed by Chargers fans and his protest began to gain
national attention. By the start of the 2016 NFL season Kaepernick had the top-selling
jersey among all NFL players.
SACRIFICING EVERYTHING

Colin Kaepernick opted out of his 49ers contract and decided to become an unrestricted free
agent. While he did opt out of his contract, Kaepernick did not have an option because if he
did not willingly opt out of his contract, the 49ers would have cut him. Colin Kaepernick
has not been on an NFL team since 2016, rendering him a free agent for the past 4 years.
FAILING

Kaepernick was invited to work out for NFL teams in November 2019. After relocating the
workout to a high school that was more than an hour away, which was attended by eight
NFL scouts, he received no job offers. “I’ve been denied for three years. We all know why. I
came out here and showed it today in front of everybody. We have nothing to hide, So
we’re waiting for the 32 owners, the 32 teams, Roger Goodell, all of them to stop running
— stop running from the truth, stop running from the people” (Kaepernick). In other words,
Colin Kaepernick was not convinced that his long-lasting unemployment was due to his
lack of qualifications, but rather because NFL teams felt threatened by his profound
revealing of the hard truth.
 WORK CITED

• Boren, C. (2020, August 26). A timeline of Colin Kaepernick's protests against police
brutality, four years after they began. Retrieved October 12, 2020, from
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2020/06/01/colin-kaepernick-kneeling-history/
• Brinson, W. (2017, June 01). The 49ers would've cut Colin Kaepernick if he hadn't opted
out of his contract. Retrieved October 12, 2020, from
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/the-49ers-wouldve-cut-colin-kaepernick-if-he-hadnt-
opted-out-of-his-contract/