NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick spurred a national discussion in recent days with his decision to forgo standing during the US national anthem as a protest against racial injustice in the country.
Now the issue has reached the beautiful game, too. On Sunday US women's national team and NWSL star Megan Rapinoe knelt during the national anthem played before her club team, Seattle Reign FC, played the Chicago Red Stars at Toyota Park.
Afterwards she said the gesture was "a little nod to Kaepernick and everything that he’s standing for right now," adding that she has experienced similar feelings to his.
“It was very intentional,” Rapinoe told reporters postgame. “It was a little nod to Kaepernick and everything that he’s standing for right now. I think it’s actually pretty disgusting the way he was treated and the way that a lot of the media has covered it and made it about something that it absolutely isn’t. We need to have a more thoughtful, two-sided conversation about racial issues in this country.
“Being a gay American, I know what it means to look at the flag and not have it protect all of your liberties. It was something small that I could do and something that I plan to keep doing in the future and hopefully spark some meaningful conversation around it. It’s important to have white people stand in support of people of color on this. We don’t need to be the leading voice, of course, but standing in support of them is something that’s really powerful.”
Toronto FC and US men's national team star Jozy Altidore has also spoken on Kaepernick's gesture, last week telling Sports Illustrated's Grant Wahl, "I understand where he's coming from."
