Colin Kaepernick rejects "celebration of white supremacy" on 4th of July in moving message

Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been one of the leading faces amid the ongoing anti-racism movement in the United States. The civil rights activist, who exited the NFL in 2017 after his controversial protests throughout the 2016 season, issued a strong statement on the 4th of July.

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Colin Kaepernick 4th of July message

The former NFL star rejected the idea of celebrating America's independence, slamming the idea of 'celebration of white supremacy'. The quarterback took to Twitter to share his message on the 4th of July, drawing attention to the more pressing concerns of racial injustice against the African-Americans. Colin Kaepernick highlighted the 'criminalisation, dehumanisation, brutalisation' of the minority community for centuries in the North American nation and demanded "liberation for all". 

The Colin Kaepernick 4th of July message was accompanied by a video of actor James Earl Jones reciting Frederick Douglass' renowned speech 'What to the Slave Is the 4th of July?' A series of shocking events in the dark racial history of America was shown in the footage. 

As mentioned above, Colin Kaepernick garnered national attention for his protests during the 2016 NFL season. The quarterback opted against standing during the national anthem as a sign of protests against racial injustice and police brutality in the US. While he has been away from the NFL for three years now, the recent Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd has brought his 'Take a Knee' protest back in contention. 

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Colin Kaepernick was among the numerous athletes to voice his opinion on the recent protests. He even started a fund to raise money for legal representation of the protesters arrested in Minneapolis through his Know Your Rights Camp. 

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As per reports, more than 15 million people have participated in the Black Lives Matter movement, which is widely recognised as one of the biggest civil rights movement in recent history. NFL has taken a pro-active stance in dealing with racism within the league. Roger Goodell released a video message last month where he admitted that the league was wrong not to listen to players about racism. Goodell even said he is encouraging teams to sign Colin Kaepernick. 

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(Image Credits: AP)