Colin Kaepernick Creates Black Panther Inspired Youth Camp
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been sparking controversy ever since he began kneeling at football games during the national anthem to act against police brutality that’s been occurring in America. On October 29th Kaepernick hosted an event in Oakland, Calif call Know Your Rights Oakland for hundreds of black and Latino children from California’s Bay Area.
The Know Your Right’s website states the organization has a mission “to help build a stronger generation of people that will create the change that is much needed in this world.” Know Your Rights Camp is “a free campaign for youth to raise awareness on higher education, self-empowerment, and instruction to properly interact with law enforcement in various scenarios.” Kaepernick and close friends kept the event under wraps, He hopes to spread his camp across the country
Similar to the Iconic Black Panther Party, Know Your Rights Camp each child has 10 basic rights and each child wore their rights on a t-shirt. Their rights are:
You have the right to be free.
You have the right to be healthy.
You have the right to be brilliant.
You have the right to be safe.
You have the right to be loved.
You have the right to be courageous.
You have the right to be alive.
You have the right to be trusted.
You have the right to be educated.
You have the right to know your rights.
According to The Washington Times, Kaepernick exclusively reported to New York Daily News’ Shaun King, “I didn’t just want to hire someone to come in and do this. We did all of this ourselves,” Kaepernick told Mr. King. “We even opted out of corporate sponsors because we just wanted the freedom to say exactly what we thought the kids we’ve brought here today need to hear and learn. I told myself that if I was going to do this type of work that I was going to actually do it myself.”
Erika Huggins, former Black Panther member was one of the speakers who attended the event to share knowledge with the children. Breakfast was catered to the children and Kaepernick interacted with them as they were involved in breakout sessions. Colin Kaepernick is one of the many celebrities showing youth that they can be the change. Kaepernick is acting because he cares not for fame or a pat on the back.
