Kaepernick has not played professional football in almost five years. However, his presence will be acutely felt during this weekend’s Super Bowl.
Famed ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, which already has a flavor inspired by Kaepernick, has decided to erect an enormous billboard honoring Kaepernick in Tampa Bay, the Super Bowl host city.
In the billboard display, Kaepernick is portrayed with a raised fist alongside his namesake Ben & Jerry’s flavor, “Change the Whirled.” Kaepernick’s own “Know Your Rights Camp” (KYRC) campaign sign, “I Know My Rights”, is also featured.
In addition to the billboard, Ben & Jerry’s also revealed a 30 by 90 foot mural filled with children wearing Kaepernick t-shirts, which emblazoned with phrases such as “I Know My Rights” and “Power To The People.”
According to Ben & Jerry’s, the children portrayed in the mural are youth based in Tampa and KYRC volunteers.
Chris Miller, who heads the global activism department of Ben & Jerry’s, proclaimed, “it’s clear that Colin was on the right side of history,” noting that Kaepernick’s protests occurred before the death of George Floyd and “the 2020 summer of racial reckoning.”
“[Kaepernick] knew a long time ago we need to address the root causes of racism,” Miller continued, adding that Ben & Jerry’s “wanted to be part fo the effort to honor Colin’s courage.”
As observed by The Hill, Ben & Jerry’s will provide a “free, COVID-safe community drive thru” by the mural. In addition, the ice cream company will also provide family-sized meals to locals, including a pint of “Change the Whirled” ice cream, as well as various gift certifications to a local barbershop and salon.
Kaepernick last played for the NFL in 2016.
