NFL outcast Colin Kaepernick has been accused of “selling out” after speculation he could be paid up to $80 million for settling his collusion complaint with the league.

No details of the agreement were provided, although NFL insider Mike Freeman said that, having spoken to NFL teams, there was speculation that Kaepernick could be in line to pocket between $60 million to $80 million.  

Did he sell-out? NO.

Kaepernick did not sell out. He did what he had to do, because he still operates within a system built to silence voices like his, the system he protested in the first place.

People who are arguing that Kaepernick could have gotten a better result, that he could have “won” in this situation and failed to, doesn’t understand what made him kneel in the first place.

It was Nate Boyer, you’ll recall, who suggested Colin Kaepernick kneel during the national anthem two years ago, rather than sit. Kneeling, Boyer thought, would show more respectful.

That didn’t work. President Donald Trump turned the protests into a conservative rallying point last fall by labeling players which lead the NFL to cave and create their anthem policy.

I stand prideful of Kaep, and await his next move. He has already made history by giving up his career for a cause and sparked a substantial discussion of race and inequality in America. And now, at the very least, this will allow him to get back to work on the ground, in the places that need it most.