How Colin Kaepernick taking a knee in 2016 revived athlete activism in sports

More than a decade after Colin Kaepernick first took a knee, CNN revisits how the 2016 protests helped revive athlete activism in sports. The article traces the sequence before the widely seen moment: first, Kaepernick stayed seated during the national anthem on August 14, 2016 against the Houston Texans, and again on August 21 versus the Denver Broncos with little initial notice. Attention exploded on August 26 when he sat once more ahead of a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. Asked about his demonstration, Kaepernick said he would not stand for a flag tied to oppression of Black people and people of color, pointing to broader violence and accountability issues. It notes the then-28-year-old was coming off a difficult 2015 season and that his protest, alongside teammate Eric Reid, became a defining sports image of the 2010s amid rising racial tensions.