Former NFL quarterback turned woke activist Colin Kaepernick is back in the news after saying that socialist New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is inspiring him and makes him want to start extolling the virtues of voting in U.S. elections. Kaepernick, whose claim to fame is taking a knee during the playing of the national anthem during the start of a game in 2016, has previously stated that he will not participate in the so-called American “system of oppression.”
As part of his protest against “the system,” he has refused to cast a ballot on Election Day. But Mamdani is inspiring him to reexamine his decision not to vote and is inspiring him to encourage his fans to get out and vote as well. “You know, I think it would be hypocritical of me to vote,” Kaepernick said in an interview with the media in 2016,
“I said from the beginning I was against oppression, I was against the system of oppression. I’m not going to show support for that system. And to me, the oppressor isn’t going to allow you to vote your way out of your oppression,” he continued. However, in his new book, he confesses that his refusal to vote might have been an “irresponsible” choice.
“The realization coming out of the 2016 election is how significant the implications can be of not voting, even if you don’t fully think this candidate represents you, and I’ve seen that,” Kaepernick explains in the book, according to a report from Breitbart News. “We’ve seen it with the Supreme Court. We’ve seen it with federal judges.”
“Part of trying to seek the best way for us to move forward and have impact is also realizing the moments where the intention of the perspective was right, but the strategy behind it actually wasn’t,” the former NFL player added. Kaepernick then admits he cast a ballot for Joe Biden in the 2020 election and for Kamala Harris in 2024.
Kaepernick may not have been too thrilled by either one of those candidates, but he’s fired up about New York City’s socialist mayor. “When we talk about leaders that are moving the needle right now, I think we’re seeing real impact coming out of Mamdani,” the former quarterback said. He also said it’s “refreshing” to see an individual making people’s needs a priority.
“It is very refreshing for a lot of people to see someone in a political role saying, ‘I am prioritizing the people’s needs. I’m going to hold people accountable to that, and we are just going to execute and deliver on this over and over again,’” he said. The woke activist said that he hopes Mamdani can get more folks engaged in the realm of politics.
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“Ultimately, I think a lot of those people who are out there that say, ‘Hey, this doesn’t represent me, I’m not voting, or I don’t feel great about the politicians out there,’ it’s because they aren’t seeing people move in that way. The more that we see that come, we’ll see more and more people involved and excited about what is happening in the political sphere,” he finished.