Colin Kaepernick Travels to Ghana to Find His 'Personal Independence'

[Teh One Who Knocks]

FOX News


Colin Kaepernick spent the Fourth of July in Ghana, where he traveled to find his "personal independence."

The free-agent NFL quarterback posted a video on Twitter, asking, "How can we truly celebrate independence on a day that intentionally robbed our ancestors of theirs?"

Kaepernick posted a longer version of the video on Instagram, starting with a quote from Frederick Douglass.

He explained that he felt that he needed to go "home" to Ghana to find out where his ancestors come from.

What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence?" - Frederick Douglass. In a quest to find my personal independence, I had to find out where my ancestors came from. I set out tracing my African ancestral roots, and it lead me to Ghana. Upon finding out this information, I wanted to visit the sites responsible for myself (and many other Black folks in the African Diaspora) for being forced into the hells of the middle passage. I wanted to see a fraction of what they saw before reaching the point of no return. I spent time with the/my Ghanaian people, from visiting the local hospital in Keta and the village of Atito, to eating banku in the homes of local friends, and paying my respects to Kwame Nkrumah's Memorial Park. I felt their love, and truly I hope that they felt mine in return.

"What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence?" - Frederick Douglass. In a quest to find my personal independence, I had to find out where my ancestors came from. I set out tracing my African ancestral roots, and it lead me to Ghana. Upon finding out this information, I wanted to visit the sites responsible for myself (and many other Black folks in the African Diaspora) for being forced into the hells of the middle passage. I wanted to see a fraction of what they saw before reaching the point of no return. I spent time with the/my Ghanaian people, from visiting the local hospital in Keta and the village of Atito, to eating banku in the homes of local friends, and paying my respects to Kwame Nkrumah's Memorial Park. I felt their love, and truly I hope that they felt mine in return.

A post shared by colin kaepernick (@kaepernick7) on Jul 4, 2017 at 11:10am PDT

While in Africa, Kaepernick also traveled to Egypt. 49ers receiver Marquise Goodwin accompanied Kaepernick there, posting a photo to Instagram.



Kaepernick, who started a nationwide trend with his controversial decision to kneel during the pre-game national anthem to protest racial injustice in America, has not been signed by an NFL team since he opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers in March.

Some have suggested that Kaepernick is being "blackballed" by NFL teams because of his decision to kneel during the anthem