Colin Kaepernick to release memoir through his own publishing company
NEW YORK (AP) - Colin Kaepernick can add author and publisher to his resume.
The former NFL quarterback who knelt during the national anthem to protest racial injustice and police brutality announced Thursday he is writing a memoir through his own publishing company, Kaepernick Publishing.
The audio version of the as-yet-untitled book is due this year. It will be available through Audible, a subsidiary of Amazon.
In 2013, Kaepernick led the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Baltimore Ravens. He knelt during the anthem in 2016 and dozens of players initially joined him. It created a national debate and drew criticism from President Donald Trump.
Kaepernick, 32, has been out of a job in the NFL for the last three years. He filed a grievance against the NFL, contending teams colluded to keep him out. The sides reached an undisclosed settlement.
Kaepernick will write about that experience and what prompted his activism. Lately, he's been conducting a campaign that instructs youngsters on understanding their rights and interacting with law enforcement.
"My protest was the culmination of years of thought and experiences, of learning and unlearning," Kaepernick said in a statement. "I want to tell the story of my evolution, and the events that led me to protest systemic oppression, in hopes that it will inspire others to rise in action."
Kaepernick says he still wants to play football. A chaotic NFL workout in November in Atlanta was moved to another location with fewer scouts after Kaepernick was unhappy with the rules the league placed on the session. That resulted in no job offers.
In his newest career, Kaepernick says he plans to release content from authors of color through Audible.
"Kaepernick Publishing believes reading is a liberator of the mind and will give us the thoughts and ideas to free our bodies," the company's website states on its "About" page. "By elevating a new generation of writers and creators, we seek to inspire all generations of readers and listeners through the development and publication of meaningful works of all genres with the focus of amplifying diverse views and voices."