Kaepernick Folds: Will Stand For Work

In a stunning capitulation from one of the most controversial sports figures in recent memory, former San Francisco 49ers backup QB Colin Kaepernick told CBS Sports that he would stand during the national anthem if given the chance to play football again.

Kaepernick, who has been training rigorously in New Jersey in an effort to re-enter league play after severing his contract with the 49ers in March, said he would not kneel for the anthem if he signs with a team. He also said he plans to donate the money from his jersey sales to charity.

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“He’s not planning on kneeling – if given the opportunity,” said Jason La Canfora, who sat down with Kaepernick for an interview.

After sitting down with Colin Kaepernick for several hours, @JasonLaCanfora says the QB is still actively trying to play in the NFL. pic.twitter.com/R9qTIZ7EQl

— NFLonCBS (@NFLonCBS) October 8, 2017

Kaepernick’s protest began on August 16, 2016, a day after he said there is no difference between the American flag and the Confederate flag. He later started kneeling instead of sitting, sparking a movement that spread across the NFL. The demonstrations have proven immensely controversial and damaging to the league’s bottom line. It also inspired President Donald Trump to lash out at the league, encouraging fans to boycott games. The president also claimed that anyone who would kneel is a “son of a bitch”.

Kaepernick’s announcement comes after the Tennessee Titans last week rebuffed his overtures, saying they wouldn’t permit him to work out with the team.

Kaepernick remains focused on playing in the NFL again and is working out daily in hopes of achieving that goal, according to sources with knowledge of the situation, which was conveyed to Titans brass last week after starting quarterback Marcus Mariota suffered a hamstring injury on Sunday, according to CBS.

Kaepernick’s agent is reportedly talking to all 32 teams, CBS said. Since leaving the league, he’s been focused on training and charity work.

*  *  *

How it all started… (via SBNation.com)

Aug. 14 and Aug. 20 — Kaepernick goes unnoticed while sitting during the anthem

Kaepernick made headlines when he sat during the 49ers third preseason game, but he also sat during the first two games, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network. Kaepernick wasn’t in uniform and didn’t play during the first two games.

Aug. 26 — Kaepernick gains attention for his protest

There was no grand unveiling of Kaepernick’s sitting protest. Instead, Jennifer Lee Chan of Niners Nation tweeted out a photo of the anthem, unrelated to Kaepernick sitting. The story gained national attention later that night and the 49ers released a statement confirming Kaepernick sat for the anthem.

Kaepernick told the media after the game he sat because of the oppression of people of color and ongoing issues with police brutality.

Aug. 28 — Kaepernick expands on his reasoning for the protest

Kaepernick met with the media two days after the game and for the first time since the protest gained national attention. He reiterated that he was acting to give a voice to people who didn’t have one.

“I’m going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me, this is something that has to change. When there’s significant change and I feel that flag represents what it’s supposed to represent, and this country is representing people the way that it’s supposed to, I’ll stand.”

 

“This stand wasn’t for me. This is because I’m seeing things happen to people that don’t have a voice, people that don’t have a platform to talk and have their voices heard, and effect change. So I’m in the position where I can do that and I’m going to do that for people that can’t.”

 

“It’s something that can unify this team. It’s something that can unify this country. If we have these real conversations that are uncomfortable for a lot of people. If we have these conversations, there’s a better understanding of where both sides are coming from.”

 

“I have great respect for the men and women that have fought for this country. I have family, I have friends that have gone and fought for this country. And they fight for freedom, they fight for the people, they fight for liberty and justice, for everyone. That’s not happening. People are dying in vain because this country isn’t holding their end of the bargain up, as far as giving freedom and justice, liberty to everybody. That’s something that’s not happening. I’ve seen videos, I’ve seen circumstances where men and women that have been in the military have come back and been treated unjustly by the country they fought have for, and have been murdered by the country they fought for, on our land. That’s not right.”

Sept. 1 — Kaepernick takes a knee during the anthem and is joined by teammate Eric Reid

For the first time during his protest, Kaepernick wasn’t alone. San Francisco safety Eric Reid expressed support for Kaepernick prior to the game and showed it during the anthem by joining him in taking a knee.

From the time the protest gained attention, Kaepernick reiterated he was not doing it to be anti-American or anti-military or to disrespect troops. He was doing it to bring serious social issues to light and try to evoke change. That stance led to him slightly adjusting the protest. Kaepernick met with former Green Beret and brief NFL long snapper Nate Boyer, and after the discussion decided to shift from sitting to taking a knee during the anthem.

“We were talking to [Boyer] about how can we get the message back on track and not take away from the military, not take away from fighting for our country, but keep the focus on what the issues really are. And as we talked about it, we came up with taking a knee. Because there are issues that still need to be addressed and it was also a way to show more respect to the men and women who fight for this country.”

After the game, Kaepernick announced a plan to donate $1 million to the charities that focus on racial issues.

Sept. 1 — Jeremy Lane of the Seattle Seahawks sits during the national anthem

Lane became the first non-teammate to join Kaepernick in protest. He sat on the bench prior to the national anthem in Oakland, just minutes after Kaepernick and Reid took a knee during the anthem in San Diego.

“I wasn’t trying to say anything. Just standing behind Kaepernick,” Lane said following the game. He added that he would keep doing it until he felt like justice was served.

Sept. 4 — Megan Rapinoe kneels during the national anthem in support of Colin Kaepernick

Before the NWSL match between the Seattle Reign and Chicago Red Stars, Rapinoe took a knee during the national anthem, while the rest of her teammates remained standing. She expressed solidarity with Kaepernick, saying that, as a gay American, she knows “what it means to look at the flag and not have it protect all of your liberties,” and that “it’s important to have white people stand in support of people of color on this.”

Not everyone in the soccer world was happy with Rapinoe’s actions. Before Sept. 7’s match between the Washington Spirit and the Seattle Reign, the Spirit rescheduled the national anthem to play while both teams were still in their locker rooms, in order to prevent Rapinoe from protesting. “We respectfully disagree with her method of hijacking our organization’s event to draw attention to what is ultimately a personal — albeit worthy — cause,” the Spirit said in an emailed statement. Rapinoe expressed anger over the decision, saying that it was “f**king unbelievable,” and claiming that it was Spirit owner Bill Lynch’s homophobia that influenced the reschedule.

And on Sept. 15, U.S. Soccer expressed disappointment in Rapinoe’s protest, sending out a statement that pleaded for players and coaches to use the national anthem as a moment “to reflect upon the liberties and freedom we all appreciate in this country.” It was an ironic and tone-deaf statement, considering that Rapinoe and Kaepernick’s protests are addressing the reality that, for many marginalized Americans who don’t fit into the “all” category, they lack the opportunity to truly “appreciate” freedom.

Sept. 9 — Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall takes a knee during the national anthem at the NFL regular season opener

Marshall became the first player to take a knee or sit during the anthem prior to a regular season game. He was a college teammate of Kaepernick at the University of Nevada. Like Kaepernick, Marshall said it was about social change.

“I’m not against the military. I’m not against the police or America,” Marshall said, according to the Denver Post. “I’m against social injustice.

 

“Kaep, he’s using his platform how he wants to use it, to reach the masses,” Marshall said. “We have freedom of speech. But then we use our platform, and we get bashed for it. It’s almost like they want us to only go with the grain. And once we go against the grain, it’s an issue.”

Sept. 12 — Eric Reid kneels alongside Colin Kaepernick. 49ers teammates and Rams players raise their fists

Kaepernick maintained his protest, and was joined by several players set to take the field before Monday Night Football. As expected, safety Eric Reid knelt next to the quarterback during the national anthem, just as he did during the last week of the preseason. 49ers linebacker Eli Harold and safety Antoine Bethea stood, but with their fists raised in the air.

Sept. 18 — More 49ers join Kaepernick, Dolphins continue protest

Kaepernick’s teammates Antoine Bethea, Eli Harold, Jaquiski Tartt and Rashard Robinson joined in protesting during the national anthem by raising their right fists ahead of San Francisco’s game vs. the Carolina Panthers.

Meanwhile in Foxboro three of the same Miami Dolphins players continued their protest. Arian Foster, safety Michael Thomas and wide receiver Kenny Stills all kneeled during the anthem.

Sept. 20 — Marshawn Lynch expresses support for Colin Kaepernick

During his appearance on Conan, Marshawn Lynch was asked about his thoughts on Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem. Lynch said he’d rather see Kaepernick “take a knee than stand up, put his hands up, and get murdered.”

Sept. 22 — Colin Kaepernick is featured on the cover of Time magazine

Time premiered the cover for its Oct. 3 issue, featuring Kaepernick kneeling in his full 49ers uniform. The issue includes a cover story from Sean Gregory, where Kaepernick’s protest is a centerpiece in a larger conversation among athletes regarding sports activism and patriotism.

TIME’s new cover: The perilous fight. How national anthem protests led by Colin Kaepernick are fueling a debate https://t.co/FsZoblqj0b pic.twitter.com/pCVB3wM2kp

— TIME (@TIME) September 22, 2016

And from then it spread to everyone in pro sports with an ax to grind and some virtue to signal. Until today that is…

And all of this happens as new polls suggest NFL is now the least favored big sport in America.