Colin Kaepernick: The NFL Tried to Buy My Silence

1. 0:00 – 1:15

   Colin Kaepernick on Jay-Z, the NFL and protest

   1. CKColin Kaepernick0:00

      [upbeat music] [audience cheering] Like, we need a Black face to put out in front. And they tried that with the Players Coalition. That wasn't successful. And Jay-Z was the, the 2.0 version of that, in my opinion. [camera shutter] We're gonna continue blackballing you, but will you be the face of our social justice initiatives? And they offered this to me as well as Eric Reid, and there was a nice price tag associated with that.

   2. TNTrevor Noah0:27

      I can imagine. [camera shutter]

   3. CKColin Kaepernick0:29

      Saw Jay-Z wear my, my jersey on SNL. Um, so I had tried to reach out to him previously, in part to say thank you, at that point, for the support.

   4. TNTrevor Noah0:40

      Right.

   5. CKColin Kaepernick0:41

      And wo- wouldn't take a call, wouldn't take a meeting, which I, oh, all good. Like-

   6. TNTrevor Noah0:47

      That's strange, but okay. [camera shutter]

   7. CKColin Kaepernick0:49

      "Hey, I wanna ask you, like, why weren't you standing for, for the Star Spangled Banner?" And give him full explanation why I'm doing it, systemic oppression, what Black people have faced, what we're seeing right now in police killing Black people. Um, and I remember he was like, "You

2. 1:15 – 5:10

   The version of Colin people think they know

   1. CKColin Kaepernick1:18

      know what comes with this, right?" [upbeat music]

   2. TNTrevor Noah1:21

      This is What Now? With Trevor Noah. [upbeat music] It makes you feel a kinda way, man. Makes you feel a kinda way. But Colin, man, thank you man. Thanks for being here, brother.

   3. CKColin Kaepernick1:34

      Oh, of course.

   4. TNTrevor Noah1:35

      This is crazy. I haven't seen you in such a long time.

   5. CKColin Kaepernick1:37

      Of course, yeah. [laughs]

   6. TNTrevor Noah1:38

      [laughs] You see, now we're in it.

   7. CKColin Kaepernick1:39

      [laughs] I'm in it now. I'm in it. [laughs]

   8. TNTrevor Noah1:43

      Um, it's funny, 'cause we would never say-

   9. CKColin Kaepernick1:46

      Oh

   10. TNTrevor Noah1:46

       ... of course.

   11. CKColin Kaepernick1:46

       Never. I, I think I-

   12. TNTrevor Noah1:47

       Of course. South Africans, Africans would never say, "Of course."

   13. CKColin Kaepernick1:49

       Yeah, you said welcome, and he was like, "Of course."

   14. TNTrevor Noah1:51

       Then I'm like, "Ah, it's not of course."

   15. CKColin Kaepernick1:52

       [laughs]

   16. TNTrevor Noah1:53

       There's no guarantee that you would be here, man.

   17. CKColin Kaepernick1:55

       [laughs]

   18. TNTrevor Noah1:55

       This is a big deal for us, man. This is a big day for us.

   19. CKColin Kaepernick1:58

       I'm just kidding. Of course I'm gonna show up for y'all.

   20. TNTrevor Noah2:00

       No, man, I appreciate it.

   21. CKColin Kaepernick2:01

       Oh, there we go. High-fives.

   22. TNTrevor Noah2:02

       No, I appreciate, I appreciate it, man.

   23. CKColin Kaepernick2:03

       Thank you so much. Yeah.

   24. TNTrevor Noah2:04

       No, man, for real. This is like, you know, there, there are some things that happen in life, it's funny. So, um, Tracee Ellis Ross was doing her first show on Broadway.

   25. CKColin Kaepernick2:13

       Yeah.

   26. TNTrevor Noah2:13

       Like, ever. Someone said to me, "Yo, Tracee's doing her first show on Broadway." I said, "That's not possible. Can't be her first, can't be her debut on, on Broadway."

   27. CKColin Kaepernick2:20

       Mm-hmm.

   28. TNTrevor Noah2:20

       It was. It was something I always assumed that, that had happened.

   29. CKColin Kaepernick2:24

       Mm-hmm. Yeah.

   30. TNTrevor Noah2:25

       Because of how natural it seemed to me.
3. 5:10 – 15:00

   Growing up Black in a white family

   1. CKColin Kaepernick5:10

      Like, you know what's out there. You don't actually know the depth behind-

   2. TNTrevor Noah5:14

      Yeah, yeah, yeah

   3. CKColin Kaepernick5:14

      ... what's actually happening.

   4. TNTrevor Noah5:15

      That's very true.

   5. CKColin Kaepernick5:16

      And for me, I, I kinda look at that as like, one, I, I appreciate that people were invested in that way, that they feel like they know that, that much of me. At the same time, I love the opportunity to be able to have those conversations and have people step back and be like, "Oh, that's very different than what my perception was."

   6. TNTrevor Noah5:41

      That's rare, though.

   7. CKColin Kaepernick5:42

      I'm, I'm actually glad you said that because, um, it makes my question very easy to ask now. [clears throat] Being raised by, um, two White parents, how do they deal with your Afro?

   8. TNTrevor Noah5:52

      [laughs]

   9. CKColin Kaepernick5:54

      When, at which point did they realize they're out of their depth?

   10. TNTrevor Noah5:57

       [laughs]

   11. CKColin Kaepernick5:59

       Where they were like, "Is this, is this what it is now?" Or they were like, "Is this a phase? It's gonna grow," and then what happened?

   12. TNTrevor Noah6:07

       Mm.

   13. CKColin Kaepernick6:08

       So in middle school was the first time that I grew my hair out, and that was ... Y- you would think it was the biggest moment ever, and for me, in part, it felt like it was. And-

   14. TNTrevor Noah6:26

       What was, what was it before? Was it just constantly short?

   15. CKColin Kaepernick6:31

       I'm ... There are gonna be a lot of people that laugh at this.

   16. TNTrevor Noah6:33

       Yeah? [laughs]

   17. CKColin Kaepernick6:34

       But there, there were-

   18. EUEugene6:34

       Let me get ahead of them. [laughs]

   19. CKColin Kaepernick6:35

       Yeah. I'ma pre-

   20. TNTrevor Noah6:36

       [laughs]

   21. EUEugene6:37

       [laughs]

   22. CKColin Kaepernick6:37

       I'm like, I'll preface this. So growing up, it was constantly ... They would take me to Supercuts-

   23. TNTrevor Noah6:45

       Yeah

   24. CKColin Kaepernick6:46

       ... and would just get a buzzcut.

   25. EUEugene6:47

       Wait, wait. What's Supercuts?

   26. TNTrevor Noah6:49

       Oh, man, Eugene.

   27. EUEugene6:50

       Oh.

   28. TNTrevor Noah6:50

       Oh, boy. You missing out in life, man.

   29. EUEugene6:53

       Tell me more.

   30. TNTrevor Noah6:53

       You missing out on missing out.
4. 15:00 – 33:00

   Adoption, identity and belonging

   1. TNTrevor Noah15:00

      you, you explain them as human beings.

   2. CKColin Kaepernick15:02

      Hmm.

   3. TNTrevor Noah15:03

      Do you know what I mean? You, you, you've got these, these two people who adopt you, and they go through, in my opinion, and maybe that's because of how you've written it, they go through the most complicated relationship with the world they live in because they didn't, they didn't realize what comes with adopting you as a human being. But just, just, just break it down for us. Like, help us understand, like, y- your parents, you know, how you came to be in their lives, and then, you know, what it was for you growing up with them.

   4. CKColin Kaepernick15:32

      Yeah. So it, to, to your point, I, I love that framing, like the nuance around people-

   5. TNTrevor Noah15:40

      Yeah

   6. CKColin Kaepernick15:40

      ... and situations is so, so critical and so important. So my parents, they, they had two children already, my brother and sister, Kyle and Devon. Um, they also had two other children who had passed because of congenital heart defects.

   7. TNTrevor Noah15:55

      Oh, damn.

   8. EUEugene15:55

      Oh, man.

   9. CKColin Kaepernick15:56

      And they passed very young. And the doctors-

   10. TNTrevor Noah15:59

       Okay

   11. CKColin Kaepernick15:59

       ... recommended, "Hey, you probably shouldn't try again. You should look at adopting if you wanna have more kids." So they were open to that. Um, ended up being adopted by them when I was five weeks old.

   12. EUEugene16:11

       Five weeks.

   13. TNTrevor Noah16:12

       Wow.

   14. CKColin Kaepernick16:12

       Five weeks. Um, now, my biological parents, um, father's Black, mother's white. My, from my understanding, I've not met either of them.

   15. TNTrevor Noah16:25

       Yeah.

   16. EUEugene16:25

       Mm-hmm.

   17. CKColin Kaepernick16:25

       From my understanding, my biological father actually played for the Denver Broncos at one point.

   18. TNTrevor Noah16:30

       Wait, are you being for real?

   19. CKColin Kaepernick16:31

       I'm being serious. [laughs] Um, this is what has been shared with me. So played for the Broncos at one point. My biological mother was 19 at the time. Um, and a lot of, lot of complexity around their situation.

   20. TNTrevor Noah16:48

       Yeah, yeah, yeah. That time as well.

   21. CKColin Kaepernick16:50

       And, um, that led to me being adopted, and was adopted, born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Parents adopted me. They grew up their whole lives in Wisconsin.

   22. TNTrevor Noah17:02

       Yeah.

   23. CKColin Kaepernick17:03

       And similar to Turlock, Wisconsin is predominantly white.

   24. TNTrevor Noah17:08

       Yeah.

   25. CKColin Kaepernick17:08

       Especially once you get outside Milwaukee, Green Bay, like, you're not gonna find a whole lot of Black people. Um, to, to this day, even to my adult life, like, going around Wisconsin, it would be like, "Oh, that's the Kaepernick kid."

   26. EUEugene17:24

       That's wild.

   27. TNTrevor Noah17:24

       Even now?

   28. CKColin Kaepernick17:24

       Like, it-

   29. TNTrevor Noah17:25

       That's how much you stood out

   30. CKColin Kaepernick17:27

       ... there was no one else. And it wa- Also interesting was almost like a, a framing of like, "Oh, that's all right. He's, he's one of the Kaepernicks."
5. 33:00 – 41:20

   Why Black hair became political

   1. CKColin Kaepernick33:00

      So the immediate reaction, even to growing my hair out-

   2. TNTrevor Noah33:03

      Yeah

   3. CKColin Kaepernick33:04

      ... was like, "Well, why you wanna do that? Like, for what?"

   4. TNTrevor Noah33:09

      Yeah.

   5. CKColin Kaepernick33:10

      And then getting the braids, initially was like, "Oh, this'll be a phase. You'll gr- like, you'll grow out of it."

   6. TNTrevor Noah33:17

      Okay.

   7. CKColin Kaepernick33:18

      And then after that first experience, and then we found a barbershop-

   8. TNTrevor Noah33:23

      Mm-hmm

   9. CKColin Kaepernick33:23

      ... and it became-

   10. TNTrevor Noah33:24

       Hmm

   11. CKColin Kaepernick33:24

       ... "Oh, I'm getting braids on a regular basis."

   12. TNTrevor Noah33:26

       Yeah.

   13. CKColin Kaepernick33:27

       This is you now. This was like, oh, this... From their perspective, like, oh, this isn't a phase-

   14. TNTrevor Noah33:35

       Mm-hmm

   15. CKColin Kaepernick33:35

       ... anymore.

   16. TNTrevor Noah33:36

       Uh-huh, and how did they feel about that?

   17. CKColin Kaepernick33:37

       Which then turned into, like, "Oh, we don't like that you have braids."

   18. TNTrevor Noah33:42

       Damn.

   19. CKColin Kaepernick33:43

       And I mean, there was pressure around it, 'cause it was like, "Oh, you can't have braids and play baseball." Or like, "Hey, your Afro won't fit under your baseball cap." And ultimately, it came out at one point that was like, "Oh, you don't look professional."

   20. TNTrevor Noah34:04

       Mm. Yep.

   21. CKColin Kaepernick34:05

       "And you look like a little thug."

   22. TNTrevor Noah34:06

       Yeah.

   23. CKColin Kaepernick34:08

       Which is, is a fascinating, like, insight-

   24. TNTrevor Noah34:13

       Yeah

   25. CKColin Kaepernick34:13

       ... to your point, because you're in a dynamic where it's your family. You know they love you.

   26. TNTrevor Noah34:21

       Yeah.

   27. CKColin Kaepernick34:21

       You know they care about you, but you realize that they have a issue with your Blackness.

   28. TNTrevor Noah34:27

       Hmm.

   29. CKColin Kaepernick34:30

       And that's a interesting piece to grapple with. Like, you love me as your son, but you don't love my Blackness as your son.

   30. TNTrevor Noah34:38

       Mm-hmm.
6. 41:20 – 55:00

   Race, code-switching and being mixed-race

   1. TNTrevor Noah42:29

      She's like, "I Finish the job ...

   2. CKColin Kaepernick42:43

      'Cause anywhere my parents show up, it's like... And you can see people trying to do the math in their head. Like, "Uh, did one of them have a Black partner previously?" [laughs]

   3. EUEugene42:57

      Yeah.

   4. TNTrevor Noah42:57

      Yeah, yeah.

   5. EUEugene42:57

      Yeah, who had that baby?

   6. TNTrevor Noah42:59

      You come with questions.

   7. CKColin Kaepernick43:01

      Oh, immediately.

   8. TNTrevor Noah43:02

      Yeah.

   9. EUEugene43:02

      Mm-hmm.

   10. CKColin Kaepernick43:02

       So, like, there, there was constantly a space of, all right, I have to explain the situation. I have to explain... Otherwise, it's like I could tell people in anything we're doing are sitting there like, "Yeah, I hear you, but I'm, I'm still trying to figure out, like, how you got here." [laughs]

   11. TNTrevor Noah43:24

       Yeah. Damn.

   12. CKColin Kaepernick43:25

       So, you throw that in the mix. But what's interesting in, for me growing up, even in being, uh, mixed race, like Black and white, like, I just view myself as a Black man.

   13. EUEugene43:40

       Mm-hmm.

   14. CKColin Kaepernick43:40

       Because you're gonna be treated like a Black man anywhere you go. Like, there w- there wasn't a, a middle ground within that. Um, now the realization that you have as you get older is also you're gonna be treated different being lighter skinned-

   15. TNTrevor Noah43:59

       Mm-hmm.

   16. EUEugene44:00

       Yeah

   17. CKColin Kaepernick44:00

       ... than your friends in community that are darker skinned. Like, that's a factor, too.

   18. TNTrevor Noah44:05

       Mm-hmm.

   19. EUEugene44:06

       Mm-hmm.

   20. CKColin Kaepernick44:07

       Um, now, when either one of you walks into a, a space that's predominantly white, like, you're still getting treated like you're Black.

   21. TNTrevor Noah44:12

       Mm-hmm.

   22. CKColin Kaepernick44:15

       The part that was interesting for me growing up is, and being in those spaces and having white parents, I also felt like white people were a lot more comfortable saying how they truly felt.

   23. TNTrevor Noah44:30

       To you.

   24. CKColin Kaepernick44:30

       Like, it wa- it was almost like, "Oh, if those are your parents, like, we're good. Like, we'll just-

   25. TNTrevor Noah44:37

       Wow

   26. CKColin Kaepernick44:37

       ... we can talk freely because you're, you're part of the white family."

   27. TNTrevor Noah44:42

       Right.

   28. EUEugene44:43

       Mm.

   29. CKColin Kaepernick44:44

       So, I think there was a lot more insight that I got into, um, like the thinking of how white people were operating just by way of them being comfortable because of the situation. Which is also an interesting, like-

   30. TNTrevor Noah45:01

       Huh
7. 55:00 – 1:03:00

   Why football became home

   1. TNTrevor Noah55:00

      Your parents are white. They love you deeply, but they have- ... very little understanding of Blackness and how it is appreciated or unappreci- All of this is happening, and then there's this new thing that develops on the side-

   2. CKColin Kaepernick55:13

      Yeah

   3. TNTrevor Noah55:14

      ... that's actually crystal clear, and that's a scoreboard.

   4. CKColin Kaepernick55:17

      Hmm.

   5. TNTrevor Noah55:18

      Mm-hmm. L- like, what did sport do in your life? How did that change or develop you as a person? Because that's, that's a whole different world.

   6. CKColin Kaepernick55:26

      Yeah. It ... So s- I love sports because so they're so clearly defined.

   7. TNTrevor Noah55:34

      Hmm. That must've been liberating.

   8. CKColin Kaepernick55:37

      It ... You can't tell me I'm, I'm less than when there's numbers on the scoreboard.

   9. TNTrevor Noah55:45

      Damn.

   10. CKColin Kaepernick55:48

       And it, it becomes a space where it becomes very clear if you win or lose, if you're good or bad.

   11. TNTrevor Noah55:55

       Hmm.

   12. CKColin Kaepernick55:55

       That's not to say there's not politics within it and all of that, but it does become a space that's much clearer who is better and who isn't. So for me, that became a, a very comfortable space. It also became a space that's like, I can hyperfocus and just go out and do what I love doing.

   13. TNTrevor Noah56:18

       Yeah.

   14. CKColin Kaepernick56:20

       And I will say, it also looked different from sport to sport.

   15. TNTrevor Noah56:25

       Oh, okay. Say more.

   16. CKColin Kaepernick56:27

       Like, like culturally, s- each sport is different. Like, right now if you think of the NFL-

   17. TNTrevor Noah56:34

       Yeah

   18. CKColin Kaepernick56:35

       ... or if you think of the NBA-

   19. TNTrevor Noah56:37

       Yeah

   20. CKColin Kaepernick56:38

       ... or Major League Baseball-

   21. TNTrevor Noah56:40

       Right

   22. CKColin Kaepernick56:40

       ... or the NHL, just throw out a few, culturally, you kind of have a feeling for each of those-

   23. TNTrevor Noah56:48

       You do

   24. CKColin Kaepernick56:48

       ... without ever stepping into the organization.

   25. TNTrevor Noah56:50

       Yeah, yeah, yeah.

   26. CKColin Kaepernick56:51

       And for me, football was the space that was like, "Oh, culturally this is closer to who I am."

   27. TNTrevor Noah56:59

       Interesting.

   28. CKColin Kaepernick57:00

       And there was, there were more Black people in football within Turlock. So I was like, "Oh, there's more community here for me."

   29. TNTrevor Noah57:09

       Yeah. Mm-hmm.

   30. CKColin Kaepernick57:11

       Um, so I, I loved football in that regard, and one of my early experiences, um, when I was eight years old and I first played tackle football, I tried out for the team, made the team. Almost passed out the first tr- day at tryouts-
8. 1:03:00 – 1:23:00

   The pressure and culture of football

   1. CKColin Kaepernick1:03:00

      to say that didn't show up in ways within basketball and baseball, but-

   2. TNTrevor Noah1:03:03

      Right

   3. CKColin Kaepernick1:03:04

      ... football really became the home there.

   4. TNTrevor Noah1:03:06

      Yeah.

   5. CKColin Kaepernick1:03:06

      So the culture piece, and then also being able to go out and have that definitive nature of, hey, in sports, you get to compete, and you're either better or you're not. And it becomes very hard to be able to skew that perception.

   6. TNTrevor Noah1:03:20

      Right. Mm-hmm.

   7. CKColin Kaepernick1:03:22

      Now, you may be able to do it initially, but over time, players know, coaches know, people watching know. It's like, yeah, you, you should be starting. You should be playing.

   8. TNTrevor Noah1:03:33

      Right.

   9. CKColin Kaepernick1:03:33

      That's the best player out there.

   10. TNTrevor Noah1:03:34

       Yeah.

   11. CKColin Kaepernick1:03:34

       That's the best team. Um, so it has a level of defense against people being able to manipulate that.

   12. TNTrevor Noah1:03:43

       Mm. Yeah, I th- I think that's, you know, I, I joked about this once with a friend. We- we were chatting. We're looking at, like, numbers in America, and it was like, okay, incarceration, and then, you know, employment in corporate spaces, and talking about, like, how a Black person moves, and then the outsize influence, or rather success of Black people in sport. Mm-hmm. And I remember, I really, I really said it flippantly, but I just said, I was like, "Yeah, because sport is the one place where you can't lie about the person's achievements- Sure ... or lack thereof." It's there for everyone to see. You, you just can't. And we take this for granted. Again, I don't blame the people, but I think we take so many of these things for granted. When you work with somebody in an office, how do you grade how good they are or aren't? Yeah. If we're honest about it. Mm-hmm. Do, do you look at the output? But what does the output actually mean? Yeah. Do you look at the input? How they, you know, feel in the office or what they make other people feel like? Mm-hmm. Is, is it, is it how they sell themselves in a meeting? Is it how they- Yeah, efficiency or not. We take, yo, we take for granted how much of that is just plucked from thin air. [laughs] And it's an idea correlated to how we perceive good, efficient- Yeah ... performance, professionalism. You even see it, take it out of race, look at it, um, men and women. Mm-hmm. One of the things I, I, I remember, I was talking to, uh, one of my team members about when I was in the office was I was... She was having a really tough time. She's like, "Man, I'm, I'm so sorry I, like, cried in that meeting." And I was like, "Why?" And she says, "I just, I don't know. I just feel so, like, unprofessional when I cry." And I said, "But it's interesting you say that, but I've seen the guys have, like, a temper tantrum, and no one thinks that that's unprofessional." And they don't apologize. And they don't apologize. You know, be like, "God, I'm sick of this shit. We gotta get it done." [laughs] And the people are like, "Yeah, we gotta get it done. He was really passionate about it." And so you realize if you, if you work in an office, for the most part- Hmm ... the office as a space has been defined. Most of its parameters that we take for granted have been defined through one idea, and that idea is a white male man. Again, I'm not against it. I'm not saying it's the people are bad. It's just if you bring a group of people together- Yeah, yeah ... and they define a space- Yeah ... that is what the space will generally be about. Mm-hmm. Okay? So now that is the benchmark. How far you deviate from it will define your professionalism. Mm. You get what I'm saying? Mm-hmm. So if your hair's far from his, if your style of dressing is far from his, if your, the way you speak is far from his, if your, anything, if... The further you get, the less professional you will be perceived as being. Mm. Right? So even woman, you get. So e- when a space becomes more female, then that starts to change how we determine professionalism. But even then, it's like, how do you dress? Where does your dress get to? What is your skirt? What is your blouse? What, et cetera, et cetera. Right. You know what I mean? Right. And that's, that's the thing that's so fascinating about sport. Yeah, it still comes with its politics and its complexity, and we're gonna chat about that, but, like, the scoreboard's the scoreboard, man. It's really, really difficult to close somebody out for a long time when the numbers start to speak. It just becomes this world where it's like, oh, yeah, yeah, here. You know? Mm. Do you put your numbers up? Do you beat your man? Do you get that ball to the carrier? Do you, y- y- do you know what I mean? Mm-hmm. And I, so I can, I can, I can see that being this world. Sure. But I, I didn't know. Again, you know, because it's, it's funny for me. I, I've experienced your journey backwards. [laughs] I didn't know that baseball was, was such a big part of your life. Yeah. It seems like you, you, like th- this is where you genuinely thought your, your life was gonna go, but then it was like, what, it was like 200... How many DVDs did you send out to scouts?

   13. CKColin Kaepernick1:07:26

       DVDs?

   14. TNTrevor Noah1:07:27

       Yeah, bro. We talking way back when, bruh.

   15. CKColin Kaepernick1:07:29

       Oh, man.

   16. EUEugene1:07:29

       Did you say DVD?

   17. TNTrevor Noah1:07:32

       You're damn straight. The TikToks-

   18. EUEugene1:07:34

       I-

   19. TNTrevor Noah1:07:34

       ... from back in the day.

   20. EUEugene1:07:35

       [laughs]

   21. CKColin Kaepernick1:07:36

       [laughs]

   22. TNTrevor Noah1:07:36

       Physical TikToks, baby. You carried them with you.

   23. EUEugene1:07:39

       [laughs]

   24. CKColin Kaepernick1:07:41

       [laughs]

   25. EUEugene1:07:41

       You're gonna have to put an explainer up of what a DVD is.

   26. CKColin Kaepernick1:07:43

       [laughs]

   27. TNTrevor Noah1:07:44

       We'll just have a little pop-up for younger people who watch.

   28. CKColin Kaepernick1:07:47

       Yeah.

   29. EUEugene1:07:47

       Oh.

   30. TNTrevor Noah1:07:47

       Yeah, DVD. Yeah, you sent out, like, hundreds, right? How many DVDs did you send out?
9. 1:23:00 – 1:37:00

   Becoming an NFL quarterback

   1. SPSpeaker1:23:00

      Jim, is that his dad of Nigerian descent-

   2. TNTrevor Noah1:23:02

      Yeah.

   3. SPSpeaker1:23:02

      And his mom from Wisconsin.

   4. TNTrevor Noah1:23:03

      I mean, I mean, he's overcome a lot.

   5. EUEugene1:23:04

      [laughs]

   6. TNTrevor Noah1:23:04

      He's just, I mean, his story, he's just overcome a lot.

   7. EUEugene1:23:09

      [laughs] It's a real rags to riches.

   8. TNTrevor Noah1:23:12

      [laughs]

   9. EUEugene1:23:14

      [laughs]

   10. TNTrevor Noah1:23:14

       Um.

   11. EUEugene1:23:15

       Oh, man.

   12. TNTrevor Noah1:23:15

       Let's, let's get in, let's get into the, the, the, the part of your journey that, like, that, like, really... I mean, th- there are two parts for me in football that, that you-

   13. EUEugene1:23:22

       You're a professional, Colin

   14. TNTrevor Noah1:23:23

       ... that, that you spoke about beautifully.

   15. EUEugene1:23:24

       Put the cup away from the mic. Yeah.

   16. TNTrevor Noah1:23:25

       Yeah, no, no, he's been press conferences, bro. He knows. Um, you know, because-

   17. SPSpeaker1:23:32

       I keep the sound quality high. [laughs]

   18. TNTrevor Noah1:23:33

       Yeah, yeah. I love it. The, the reason I w- I want everyone to read your book is because-

   19. EUEugene1:23:40

       Mm-hmm

   20. TNTrevor Noah1:23:40

       ... I think when anybody writes a book, if they write it well-

   21. EUEugene1:23:42

       Mm-hmm

   22. TNTrevor Noah1:23:42

       ... it is both a beautiful introduction to a human being, but it's also a fascinating look into aspects of lives that we may never get to live.

   23. EUEugene1:23:52

       Mm.

   24. TNTrevor Noah1:23:52

       You know? And for me, it's the sport itself.

   25. EUEugene1:23:56

       Mm.

   26. TNTrevor Noah1:23:58

       You know, when, when, when you're, like, in a, you're sharing a room with Cam Newton and he's got, like, tons of Arm- Under Armour gear. You've got no gear, and he's just like, "Yo, just take it and have it." Like, that, that beautiful experience where, you know, where he's, like, in this echelon that you don't even know that you're gonna get to at some point, but you do.

   27. EUEugene1:24:15

       Mm.

   28. TNTrevor Noah1:24:15

       You, you know, when you talk about, like, meeting your idols and then becoming teammates with them, working with them.

   29. EUEugene1:24:20

       That's crazy.

   30. TNTrevor Noah1:24:20

       Like, there's so many parts of your journey, but I know we'd be remiss if we didn't get into, like, two of the biggest seminal moments. The first one being you, the Super Bowl, just, like, how you get into the team and how this, like, changes your life. You know, going to the mall, getting mobbed. L- let's just talk about that shift, because for your, for your whole life, Colin Kaepernick sort of sticks out.
10. 1:37:00 – 1:48:00

    The moment that led to his protest

    1. TNTrevor Noah1:37:00

       chosen and then stepping up to the choice.

    2. CKColin Kaepernick1:37:02

       Mm-hmm.

    3. TNTrevor Noah1:37:02

       All these... You don't even have time. You've just gotta get back in and then start, start working again. All of this is happening. You're in the NFL. You- you- you're playing football. And then, yo man, like all of a sudden, like, like cat in an alley again, another thing comes and tackles your life, and it's protests, it's America going through a period where it felt like every single week we were seeing police shootings of unarmed people, Black men-

    4. CKColin Kaepernick1:37:32

       Mm

    5. TNTrevor Noah1:37:32

       ... oftentimes, most times actually. And then, like, the videos would contradict what the police were saying. Every single time would be a statement, "The person did this," and then the video would come and be like, "But they didn't do that." And w- And then you saw trust in society fraying. And all of this was happening, and in the midst of that... And you, you really lay this out beautifully in the book. It's like you, you have this moment where you are, you're basically processing everything that's going on And you make a decision. And I, I honestly, I hope that people who think they don't like you, and I say think because-

    6. CKColin Kaepernick1:38:09

       Mm

    7. TNTrevor Noah1:38:09

       ... they don't know you, but people who think they don't like you, I hope if they only read one part of the book, I hope they read that part because I think it's shaped so much of how people think your thought, thought process works.

    8. CKColin Kaepernick1:38:20

       Mm.

    9. TNTrevor Noah1:38:20

       But it really showed me that there was no, quote-unquote, "right way to do it."

    10. CKColin Kaepernick1:38:25

        [laughs]

    11. TNTrevor Noah1:38:26

        Because everything in every part of your story was what someone told you to do the other way around, and then they shifted the goal post. And like, "You shouldn't protest like that. You shouldn't have done it like... Well, why didn't you do the, why did you do that? Why w- why didn't you..." Take, take us through that moment, please. Like, y- you, you know, because let's, let's start at the beginning. The, the very first time that you decided to not stand for the anthem, what was going through your head? And, and where was this, and how did it happen?

    12. CKColin Kaepernick1:38:52

        So [sighs] going back to the moment of first sitting during the anthem-

    13. TNTrevor Noah1:38:58

        Yeah

    14. CKColin Kaepernick1:38:58

        ... in, it's August 14, 2016, uh, preseason game. And [clears throat] to your point, this, this moment of reflection, I think important context leading into that is for the years prior, I'd been educating myself on Black history, systemic, uh, oppression. We're trying to get a better understanding of why systems are moving and operating the way they are.

    15. TNTrevor Noah1:39:31

        Yeah.

    16. CKColin Kaepernick1:39:32

        And what that has looked like historically. In the midst of doing that, um, I get injured in the 2015 season. Three separate injuries. Um, tore my labrum, tore my UCL in my thumb, tore my meniscus. Had to get surgery on all three.

    17. TNTrevor Noah1:39:51

        Before you move on actually with the story, let's, let's just rewind on this because I, I... This, this part of the book was really revealing to me, and it made me have a deeper level of empathy and respect for athletes.

    18. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:01

        Mm-hmm.

    19. TNTrevor Noah1:40:02

        You made me realize, in a really crystal clear way, that we as fans take for granted that the athlete is not necessarily completely aligned with the sports organization that they work for.

    20. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:15

        Mm. [laughs]

    21. TNTrevor Noah1:40:16

        No, because I-

    22. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:17

        Yeah

    23. TNTrevor Noah1:40:17

        ... I, I know we're gonna go down that story, and we'll come back to it, but I, you just reminded me of something you talked about in the book about those injuries. When you were getting looked at by the team, they didn't tell you that you had a torn meniscus. They didn't tell you that you had a, a torn w- part-

    24. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:32

        UCL

    25. TNTrevor Noah1:40:33

        UCL. They didn't tell you that. They didn't use those words. They, they, it was a contusion is what they said.

    26. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:38

        Contusion, which is essentially a bruise.

    27. TNTrevor Noah1:40:40

        Yeah.

    28. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:40

        It's a minimization of an injury.

    29. TNTrevor Noah1:40:41

        Yeah.

    30. CKColin Kaepernick1:40:43

        Well, it, what you realize is the team doctors are paid by the team.
11. 1:48:00 – 1:53:00

    Building Know Your Rights Camp

    1. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:00

       injuries," or other areas that they told me were contusions.

    2. TNTrevor Noah1:48:02

       Mm. Right.

    3. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:03

       Like, yeah, you, you tore the ligament in your thumb, which is, that's my throwing hand.

    4. TNTrevor Noah1:48:09

       Right.

    5. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:10

       Just like navigate that. Did a, a scan of my knee. Like, tore your meniscus in your knee.

    6. TNTrevor Noah1:48:18

       Yeah.

    7. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:18

       Had to clean that up. So at one point I'm sitting in Vail. I have a sling on my left arm, I have a cast on my right hand, and I have a sleeve on my left knee, and I was like, "This, this is absurd. Like, I just need to get healthy-"

    8. TNTrevor Noah1:48:33

       Right. Yeah

    9. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:33

       ... "I need to get back on the field." But what it also did, this was the first time in my career that I actually had to be still.

    10. TNTrevor Noah1:48:43

        Hmm. Wow.

    11. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:45

        There, there was never another moment that was like, you can't go train. You can't go practice.

    12. TNTrevor Noah1:48:52

        Oh, depression.

    13. CKColin Kaepernick1:48:53

        You can't go... And I'm in Vail. I still have to go do my, my rehab, but the rest of the day I'm sitting there and I'm like, "All right, what, what do I do?"

    14. TNTrevor Noah1:49:02

        Yeah.

    15. CKColin Kaepernick1:49:03

        And continuing to read, continuing to research as part of this, and it's months and months long as far as rehab. And during this time period, Mario Woods is killed in San Francisco. And at that point in time I was visiting my family at home. I'm sitting here watching the video. I was like, "They, they just executed this man-

    16. TNTrevor Noah1:49:34

        Hmm

    17. CKColin Kaepernick1:49:35

        ... in the middle of the street." And the video looks like a firing squad. Like, the police have him surrounded. Um, they said he, uh, had a knife and was threatening them. He... There was no scenario where he was any threat to them. And they kill him, and you just, you hear all of the officers' shots just ringing out. I'm sitting here, I'm like, "This, this is on the back of-" Mike Brown, Tamir Rice, Freddie Gray. Like, we're-

    18. TNTrevor Noah1:50:19

        And those are just the-

    19. CKColin Kaepernick1:50:19

        The-

    20. TNTrevor Noah1:50:19

        ... high-profile ones

    21. CKColin Kaepernick1:50:20

        Those are just-

    22. TNTrevor Noah1:50:21

        Yeah

    23. CKColin Kaepernick1:50:21

        ... the high-profile ones

    24. TNTrevor Noah1:50:22

        Yeah

    25. CKColin Kaepernick1:50:22

        Back of Sandra Bland.

    26. TNTrevor Noah1:50:24

        Mm-hmm.

    27. CKColin Kaepernick1:50:24

        Like, we're... We've seen this so frequently at this point.

    28. TNTrevor Noah1:50:28

        Mm.

    29. CKColin Kaepernick1:50:28

        And it's like, "What, what am I gonna do? What can I do about this?" And that actually became the moment that I called my wife Nessa, and I'm like, "Seeing this, like, we have to do something," and we started thinking about what we can do. And that's actually where the birth of Know Your Rights Camp came from-

    30. TNTrevor Noah1:50:53

        Oh, yeah. Yeah
12. 1:53:00 – 2:03:00

    Why he chose to sit during the anthem

    1. TNTrevor Noah1:53:00

       One of the biggest criticisms that you experienced, and I think many people experienced, is that they did not protest in the correct manner.

    2. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:08

       Mm-hmm.

    3. TNTrevor Noah1:53:08

       This is oftentimes the criticism. People will say, they'll say, "You know, Colin, I'm, I'm all for... We live in a country with First Amendment freedoms. You can speak your mind. I- I'm, I'm all... But do it in the right manner. Do it in a peaceful man- Do it in a way that isn't disruptive. Do it in a way that..." But just literally so people can hear from you, you, 'cause you write this.

    4. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:28

       Hmm.

    5. TNTrevor Noah1:53:28

       You write this.

    6. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:28

       Yeah.

    7. TNTrevor Noah1:53:29

       Literally, your protest at the time was you sitting where?

    8. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:34

       Sitting on a, a Gatorade cooler.

    9. TNTrevor Noah1:53:36

       That was it. While the anthem's playing, the man is sitting on a Gatorade cooler. He's not interrupting an anthem.

    10. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:43

        No.

    11. TNTrevor Noah1:53:43

        He's not cursing people out. He's not fighting with people. He's not... No, no, no. He's just sitting quietly. Uthulela, as we'd say.

    12. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:50

        Yeah.

    13. TNTrevor Noah1:53:50

        He's there. He's just like, he, he is- he's, he's quieted himself-

    14. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:54

        He's qui- Yeah

    15. TNTrevor Noah1:53:54

        ... is the way we put it.

    16. CKColin Kaepernick1:53:55

        Mm-hmm. Mm.

    17. TNTrevor Noah1:53:56

        It means, like, you are to yourself and you've quieted yourself. Y- y- you know what I mean? And you bother no one. Three games-

    18. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:02

        Mm-hmm

    19. TNTrevor Noah1:54:02

        ... you're doing that, it's not a thing. Then something happens.

    20. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:06

        The... Then after the third game, um, finished playing. This is the first time I actually stepped back on the field, coming back from my injuries, and cleaning up in the locker room, our PR team comes over, and they're like, "Hey, uh, we just got a request from Steve Wyche that he wants to talk to you after your press conference, uh, about why you weren't standing during the Star-Spangled Banner." I was like, "Oh, okay." And I, I could tell they were a little nervous.

    21. TNTrevor Noah1:54:42

        Yeah.

    22. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:43

        And they-

    23. TNTrevor Noah1:54:44

        With the high-pitched request.

    24. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:45

        [laughs]

    25. TNTrevor Noah1:54:45

        "Hey, hey, um, um, we just-

    26. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:47

        [laughs]

    27. TNTrevor Noah1:54:48

        ... hey, uh, um, um, look, um-

    28. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:50

        [laughs]

    29. TNTrevor Noah1:54:50

        ... we just, we, uh, you know, he, uh..."

    30. CKColin Kaepernick1:54:52

        [laughs]
13. 2:03:00 – 2:10:00

    What happened after the NFL protest

    1. CKColin Kaepernick2:03:00

       the, the NFL blackballed me. They... Couldn't get a job with any team. Um, we did a full breakdown of this in relation to was this the, going back to, to facts and stats.

    2. TNTrevor Noah2:03:13

       Yeah.

    3. CKColin Kaepernick2:03:14

       Historically, someone of my caliber that has performed the way I have, has there ever been a scenario where they haven't found a job after a season?

    4. TNTrevor Noah2:03:23

       Hmm.

    5. CKColin Kaepernick2:03:24

       Not a single one. So the data supports that.

    6. TNTrevor Noah2:03:29

       Right.

    7. CKColin Kaepernick2:03:30

       The reality also s- supports it in relation to, uh, went, uh, to go visit the Seahawks. Everything they're asking is about the politics.

    8. TNTrevor Noah2:03:39

       Damn.

    9. CKColin Kaepernick2:03:40

       The following year, um, they call me to come in for a workout. They've already said like, "We know you're a starter." Call me to come in for a workout. Before I get there-

    10. TNTrevor Noah2:03:51

        Yeah

    11. CKColin Kaepernick2:03:51

        ... um, or before I'm supposed to get on the flight, call my agent and are like, "Well, before he comes, will he commit to not taking a knee?" And I wouldn't commit to that. Canceled my flight. Workout never happened. So there plenty of instances of this happening. Um, and also just to be explicitly clear with it, no team has ever offered me a job at any position-

    12. TNTrevor Noah2:04:19

        Interesting

    13. CKColin Kaepernick2:04:19

        ... not as a starter, not as a backup, not as a practice squad player.

    14. TNTrevor Noah2:04:24

        Damn.

    15. CKColin Kaepernick2:04:25

        No position whatsoever, so going from a starter to nothing.

    16. TNTrevor Noah2:04:29

        Yeah.

    17. CKColin Kaepernick2:04:29

        Um, on the back of that, uh, filed a grievance against the NFL, um, that is laid out by the CBA process, um, which is the collected bargaining agreement between the players union and NFL. So you have to go through that process.

    18. TNTrevor Noah2:04:46

        Yeah.

    19. CKColin Kaepernick2:04:47

        Um, part of the terms of that process, which I will say candidly I did not know going in, um, is everything is confidential-

    20. TNTrevor Noah2:04:56

        Right

    21. CKColin Kaepernick2:04:57

        ... which I thought there would be opportunity to expose all of that. Um, had a settlement with them. Um, I'm gonna say it is also interesting when we talk about systems and incentives. You have to go through a special arbitrator-

    22. TNTrevor Noah2:05:14

        Hmm

    23. CKColin Kaepernick2:05:14

        ... as part of that process. That is agreed upon between the NFL and the NFLPA. At any point, they can be fired by either one of those.

    24. TNTrevor Noah2:05:26

        Mid-arbitration?

    25. CKColin Kaepernick2:05:28

        Um, I believe mid-arbitration, but also, um, from my understanding of that agreement, at any point-

    26. TNTrevor Noah2:05:35

        Mm-hmm

    27. CKColin Kaepernick2:05:35

        ... they can be like, "We don't like you."

    28. TNTrevor Noah2:05:37

        Yeah.

    29. CKColin Kaepernick2:05:38

        So going back to incentives, um, that became a factor. Also during that time period, 'cause we had looked at can we take this to the Supreme Court-

    30. TNTrevor Noah2:05:48

        Right
14. 2:10:00 – 2:19:00

    Colin Kaepernick on Jay-Z

    1. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:00

       around where we think we're gonna have the biggest impact.

    2. TNTrevor Noah2:10:03

       W- what is your relationship with Jay-Z now? Where, where does that stand? Because that's become like a, a, a Twitter guessing game.

    3. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:11

       Yeah.

    4. TNTrevor Noah2:10:11

       You know, people are like, "Jay-Z said this, Colin feels that."

    5. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:14

       [laughs]

    6. TNTrevor Noah2:10:15

       We, I, I don't, I don't know anything about any of it, and I, and I hate to assume. But I, but I just wanna know, because I'll lay out what I've seen, and you'll tell me what is or isn't. But like, some people frame it as if like they go like, Jay-Z joined up, teamed up with the NFL to help them. They said he was coming in to like, you know, revitalize not just the image but the way they, they did the game-

    7. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:34

       Yeah

    8. TNTrevor Noah2:10:34

       ... based on, on you. And then s- the camp split. Some people say it felt like Jay-Z didn't focus enough on the original messaging and focused more on the entertainment side of things.

    9. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:45

       Mm.

    10. TNTrevor Noah2:10:45

        And then the other camp goes, "No, Colin went off and made his own deal, and that's why like Jay-Z and Colin don't see eye to eye." And then the other day when he was like at his, one of his concerts, he said something about you.

    11. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:54

        In the freestyle.

    12. TNTrevor Noah2:10:54

        So like [laughs] like how, yeah, in the freestyle. How do you, how do you see the situation? Where does it land for you?

    13. CKColin Kaepernick2:10:59

        Yeah. Um, I mean, I, I, we have very different perspectives as far as how we operate as a people. And for me, there was a point in time Roc Nation was trying to recruit me to be represented by them. Um, saw Jay-Z wear my, my jersey on SNL. Um, so I had tried to reach out to him previously, in part just to say thank you-

    14. TNTrevor Noah2:11:30

        Mm-hmm

    15. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:30

        ... at that point for the support.

    16. TNTrevor Noah2:11:32

        Right.

    17. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:33

        And w- wouldn't take a call, wouldn't take a meeting, which I, I, all good, like-

    18. TNTrevor Noah2:11:40

        That's strange, but okay.

    19. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:43

        I, I agree, but also-

    20. TNTrevor Noah2:11:44

        It's strange to me 'cause you're wearing my jersey. That's the only reason I'm saying that

    21. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:47

        [laughs] Yeah.

    22. TNTrevor Noah2:11:48

        Yeah, absolutely makes sense.

    23. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:49

        Yeah.

    24. TNTrevor Noah2:11:49

        Yeah. That's strange, but okay.

    25. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:50

        Mm-hmm. And your organization's tried to recruit me.

    26. TNTrevor Noah2:11:52

        Right, right, right.

    27. CKColin Kaepernick2:11:52

        Like, but I don't know what people have going on, so I'm, I, I, I'm not asking for anything.

    28. TNTrevor Noah2:12:00

        Right.

    29. CKColin Kaepernick2:12:01

        Um, now on the back of that, uh, he'd asked me to come on stage, take a knee while he performed Story of OJ. I was like, "That, that's weird. You won't get on a call with me, but like, you want me to do this?" I was like, "No, but would love to sit down if you have time."

    30. TNTrevor Noah2:12:19

        My man.
15. 2:19:00 – 2:25:08

    Nessa’s role in Colin’s life and work

    1. TNTrevor Noah2:19:00

       I think it's nuanced. I think it's layered. I, I, I don't think you can just come out with, with, like, one flat idea.

    2. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:06

       [laughs]

    3. TNTrevor Noah2:19:06

       You know, I, I loved your parents. I also felt bad for them. I felt bad for you. I, I enjoyed parts of the NFL. There are parts I got angry about. You know, thought about justice, thought about the system, and the biggest shout-out I have to give, yo. Oh, that's the book. There, there's, there, there it is. There it is.

    4. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:20

       Ah, yes.

    5. TNTrevor Noah2:19:21

       I'll hold that up. I'll hold that up. This.

    6. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:22

       Yeah.

    7. TNTrevor Noah2:19:22

       This right here, man. This. Let me tell you something, biggest shout-outs-

    8. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:27

       Mm.

    9. TNTrevor Noah2:19:27

       Because the, the, I think a lot of the time the shout-out will, won't be said-

    10. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:32

        Mm.

    11. TNTrevor Noah2:19:32

        Because it isn't as, isn't mentioned as clearly as it is here.

    12. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:35

        Yeah, 100%.

    13. TNTrevor Noah2:19:36

        The lady in your life.

    14. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:37

        Yeah.

    15. TNTrevor Noah2:19:37

        Let me tell you something, man.

    16. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:38

        Nessa, exceptional.

    17. TNTrevor Noah2:19:39

        Let me tell you something.

    18. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:40

        Nessa, exceptional.

    19. TNTrevor Noah2:19:40

        Nessa, your wife, she, the way you talk about her in this book, she is one of the structural walls in the house that is Colin Kaepernick.

    20. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:48

        Mm-hmm.

    21. TNTrevor Noah2:19:49

        You talk about her in the foundation of your program. You talk about her in helping you recover and looking at what you need to do to your body. You talk about what she's done for your mind. You talk about-

    22. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:57

        Yeah

    23. TNTrevor Noah2:19:57

        ... how she supported you when the whole world was against you.

    24. CKColin Kaepernick2:19:59

        [laughs]

    25. TNTrevor Noah2:20:00

        You talk about how you strategize together, how you live together, how you laugh together. You talk about the, the birth of your child and how stressful that was, how terrifying it was, how painful it was. I think a story that many couples, many women, many men can, can relate to.

    26. CKColin Kaepernick2:20:13

        Yeah.

    27. TNTrevor Noah2:20:13

        You know, almost losing a newborn child. But, man, the fact that you don't tell the story as if it is only yours, you just tell it from your perspective-

    28. CKColin Kaepernick2:20:22

        Mm

    29. TNTrevor Noah2:20:22

        ... is honestly-

    30. CKColin Kaepernick2:20:23

        Yeah

Episode duration: 2:25:09