Two years after he first took a knee on the football field, Colin Kaepernick will be awarded one of Harvard University’s highest honors.
This October 11th, Kaepernick will receive the W.E.B Du Bois Medal, presented by Harvard’s Hutchins Center for African & African American Research.
W.E.B. Du Bois Medals will be presented to Colin Kaepernick, Dave Chappelle, Kenneth I. Chenault, Shirley Ann Jackson, Pamela J. Joyner, Florence C. Ladd, Bryan Stevenson, and Kehinde Wiley on Oct 11 https://t.co/H0IttulsjL
— Harvard University (@Harvard) September 20, 2018
Du Bois was an African-American writer and activist, best known for his seminal book “The Souls of Black Folk.”
Other Du Bois medalists this year include comedian Dave Chappelle and philanthropist Kenneth Chenault.
All the honorees are individuals who, according to a Harvard statement, have made significant contributions to African-American history and culture and are “individuals who advocated for intercultural understanding and human rights in an increasingly global and interconnected world.”
The Du Bois Medal recipients
Colin Kaepernick, an athlete and activist, is perhaps best known for protesting against racial injustice by taking a knee rather than standing during the playing of the national anthem when he was a quarterback with the San Francisco 49ers. Kaepernick has pledged to donate $1 million to “organizations working in oppressed communities.” And, in a recent highly publicized endorsement deal with Nike — Believe in Something. Even if it Means Sacrificing Everything — the company has agreed to donate to Kaepernick’s “Know Your Rights” nonprofit organization.
Previous honorees include Oprah Winfrey, Muhammad Ali and US Rep. John Lewis.
Earlier this year, Kaepernick was named Ambassador of Conscience by Amnesty International. Things are going great for a guy who has been blackballed in his profession.
