News of Colin Kaepernick's socks, which depicts police officers as pigs, has been making the rounds since last night. The San Francisco 49ers quarterback issued a statement regarding the socks, which he has worn during some team practices.
Kaepernick wanted to address the socks before they "are used to distract from the real issues."
"I wore these socks, in the past, because the rogue cops that are allowed to hold positions in police departments, not only puts the community in danger, but also puts the cops that have the right intentions in danger by creating an environment of tension and mistrust," said Kaepernick via Instagram. "I have two uncles and friends who are police officers and work to protect and serve ALL people. So before these socks, which were worn before I took my public stance, are used to distract from real issues, I wanted to address this immediately."
Kaepernick will continue to protest what he calls "unjust" actions by this country. He has been sitting during pre-game National Anthems during preseason. Kaepernick also pointed out and criticized the actions by police officers, which he described as "police brutality" while explaining his decision to continue to protest.
"I'll continue to sit," said Kaepernick on Sunday. "I'm going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me this is something that has to change. When there's significant change and I feel like that flag represents what it's supposed to represent, this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to, I'll stand.
"There's a lot of things that need to change. One specifically? Police brutality. There's people being murdered unjustly and not being held accountable. People are being given paid leave for killing people. That's not right. That's not right by anyone's standards."
