Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick will release a memoir sometime this year through a company he has founded called Kaepernick Publishing. Audible will release an audio version of the memoir.
“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 said in a statement Thursday.
According to the statement released by Audible, the memoir will share the life experiences that led Kaepernick to risk his career as an NFL quarterback in one silent act of protest.
Kaepernick, who in 2012-13 quarterbacked the San Francisco 49ers to an appearance in the Super Bowl, protested police brutality and social injustice by kneeling during the pregame national anthem in 2016. He has not been with an NFL team since the 49ers released him in March 2017.
He filed a grievance against the NFL in October 2017 under the collective bargaining agreement, alleging collusion against signing him to an NFL contract. That grievance was settled in February 2019.
In November 2019, Kaepernick, 32, worked out for seven NFL teams in Georgia, and his representatives sent video of the workout to the 25 teams that did not attend, but he remains unsigned.
“My desire to play football is still there,” Kaepernick told USA Today on Tuesday. “I still train five days a week. I’m ready to go, I’m ready for a phone call, tryout, workout at any point in time. I’m still waiting on the owners and their partners to stop running from this situation. So I hope I get a call this offseason. I’ll be looking forward to it.”
According to filings with the New York Department of State, Kaepernick Publishing was established in March 2019.