Former NFL player Colin Kaepernick has come under fire for comparing the NFL’s draft process to a slave auction in his new Netflix series, Colin in Black & White.
Kaepernick, who made headlines in 2016 by choosing to sit, then kneel during The National Anthem, accuses the NFL of establishing a “power dynamic” between the league and its players, who are predominantly Black.
“Before they put you on the field, teams poke, prod and examine you searching for any defect that might affect your performance,” said the 33-year-old. “No boundary respect. No dignity left intact.”
In one particular scene in the six-part documentary, Black actors playing aspiring NFL prospects transform into shackled slaves on sale at an auction. In another, actors playing white NFL owners are shown whipping the NFL hopefuls as an auctioneer verbally objectifies them. “Look at this here! Come on! Who wants this?” he shouts amid the controversial scene, a comparison that has garnered a significant amount of backlash for Kaepernick.
FOX Sports host Clay Travis, who has been critical of Kaepernick in the past, referred to the former San Francisco 49er as an “imbecile” who “lacks a functional brain.”
Colin Kaepernick compares the NFL combine, which allows all players of all races a voluntary chance to become multi-millionaires, to slavery. Anyone still defending this imbecile lacks a functional brain. pic.twitter.com/rMaKi7c6xh
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) October 30, 2021
Directed by award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay, Colin in Black & White is currently available to stream on Netflix.