‘Just Do It’: Colin Kaepernick featured in 30th Anniversary Nike ad campaign

Over the weekend, the new Nike 30thanniversary ‘Just Do It’ ad campaign was revealed. The ad features former NFL quarterback, Colin Kaepernick.

Kaepernick has been signed to Nike since 2011 but, has not played in the NFL since 2016. It is worth noting that Kaepernick is involved in an ongoing legal battle with the NFL, a long-time, trusted partner of Nike.

Kaepernick shared the ad on social media with the featured message: “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.”

At the beginning of the 2016 NFL season, Kaepernick was seen sitting during the National Anthem in an effort to raise awareness around police brutality and social injustice against people of color. Later in the season, he began kneeling instead of sitting, at the advice of Nate Boyer, a former U.S. Army Green Beret. Kaepernick has not been signed to a team since the end of the 2016 season.

Nike’s decision to endorse Kaepernick has garnered a range of emotional responses from fury and ire to recognition and validation. Angry consumers have posted videos on social media of their burning Nike gear. Other consumers are posting comments in support of the brand’s bold decision.

Although Kaepernick has been kept out of the NFL, he has remained silently vocal about equality for all. From keeping his $1 million donation promise to continuing his philanthropic work in oppressed communities, Kaepernick is doing what he set out to do when he first sat down on that sideline bench: shine a light on social injustice and inequality.

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