Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick will hold a throwing exhibition in front of NFL scouts during the halftime of the University of Michigan's spring game on Saturday afternoon at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, thanks in no small part to a group of students following his example.
For more, stream KCBS Radio now.
Wolverine Against Racism (WAR), a social justice and anti-racism organization of student-athletes at Michigan, is sponsoring Kaepernick's workout. The 34-year-old has been unsigned since becoming a free agent in 2017, following a year in which he kneeled before games during the playing of the national anthem to protest police brutality and societal racism.
Kaepernick has maintained he wants to play in the league, traveling across the country to work out with wide receivers and sharing the footage on social media. When Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, Kaepernick's coach during the first four years of his career, announced that the QB would serve as the honorary captain during Saturday's game, WAR's executive board and their faculty advisor in the athletic department collaborated on a natural partnership.
"We saw that he was running workouts across the country, and wanted to offer that experience for others in our community," India Woods, a sports management graduate student who played volleyball at Hampton University, told KCBS Radio on Friday night. "We think it's an amazing opportunity, and a way to involve the student body with both of our efforts."
Kaepernick visited with the group during the week, addressing members of the nearly two-year-old organization. Breana Nelson, a master's student studying nutritional sciences who threw for the track and field team, founded the group in 2020, shortly after the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd set off global protests against systemic racism and issues Kaepernick's protest intended to highlight four years prior.
Nelson told KCBS Radio they spoke with Kaepernick about some of his lessons learned and challenges faced as a social activist, including working with people who have different beliefs and expectations. She said it was "kind of like a jaw-dropping moment" to talk to Kaepernick just two years after starting the group.
"Everything is very fresh and new, but I think having someone like Colin come in so early on really kind of sets the tone for our organization, and for everything that we're trying to accomplish," she said.
It was by no means a one-way conversation, either.
"They were leading the conversation just as much as he was,” Abigail Eiler, a professor in the Michigan School of Social Work, the athletic department’s Chief Diversity Officer and WAR's faculty advisor told KCBS Radio.
"Because they have the skills, they have the commitment, they have the energy and the drive to make change in our community," she continued. "And I think that speaks volumes for them, and the work that they intend to do in the future."
Eiler said the group's conversation with Kaepernick is the beginning of "a continued partnership," one that will allow WAR to create "a stronger network so that we can create more change across our country."
Woods, Nelson and Haven Essien – WAR's vice president, and a senior studying French, molecular, cellular and developmental biology – will all graduate from the university at the end of this month. The trio told KCBS Radio their activism will continue well after they receive their caps and gowns.
That's something Kaepernick knows well.
"In part, WAR was kind of able to build our foundation and our initiatives off of his actions that really brought visibility to the racism and social justice issues that we face day to day," Essien said. "His voice raised ours."
LISTEN to KCBS Radio
FAVORITE KCBS Radio
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
Related
