Kaepernick, Colin (1987-…), is a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). Kaepernick became the center of a national controversy in 2016 when he refused to stand during the playing of the national anthem at the start of NFL games. He said his action was a protest against racial injustice in the United States. Throughout the country, many people condemned Kaepernick as being unpatriotic. Others supported his stand.
Kaepernick was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in 2011 and became the team’s starting quarterback in the middle of the 2012 season. He led San Francisco to an appearance in the 2013 Super Bowl, where San Francisco lost to the Baltimore Ravens, 34-31.
Kaepernick decided to leave the 49ers early in 2017 to become a free agent. He remained unsigned through the 2017 season. In October 2017, he filed a grievance, charging the NFL and the teams’ owners with colluding (acting together secretly) to keep him out of the NFL. Kaepernick remained unsigned by any NFL team throughout the 2018 season. In early 2019, Kaepernick settled his collusion suit with the NFL.
In 2018, Kaepernick appeared in advertising for Nike, a major brand of sports apparel and shoes. The ad, with a theme of standing up for dissent and social justice, was praised for its boldness but also sparked calls for a boycott of Nike products. Sales rose, however, with Nike company reporting an increase in revenue of more than 10 percent. Nike also supplies uniforms and shoes to NFL teams.
Colin Rand Kaepernick was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Nov. 3, 1987, to a white mother and an African American father. His father left his mother before Colin was born, and his mother gave him up for adoption to Rick and Teresa Kaepernick. Colin grew up in California and began playing football at the age of 8.
Kaepernick played college football at the University of Nevada at Reno and became a star quarterback both as a passer and a runner. He played four years at the university, from 2007 through 2010. Kaepernick became the first player in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, college football’s highest division, to pass for more than 10,000 yards and run for more than 4,000 yards during his career. After graduation, Kaepernick entered the NFL draft and was selected in the second round by San Francisco.
