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Colin Kaepernick Stands Up By Sitting Down for Anthem

A look back at how he was raised helps explain why the 49ers quarterback is choosing to protest what he perceives are racial inequalities in America

Tony Avelar/AP

Colin Kaepernick’s decision to sit for the national anthem in protest of institutional racism in America—an unprecedented move in the vast non-partisan tradition of quarterback behavior—made me think of the fall of 2012, when I had a unique glimpse into the world that raised Colin Kaepernick.

I was a rookie reporter at USA Today at the time, two years removed from college, and the same age as Kaepernick.