Colin Kaepernick Calls Alton Sterling Shooting 'State Sanctioned Lynching'

Free-agent quarterback Colin Kaepernick sent out a tweet Tuesday calling the shooting of Alton Sterling in Louisiana a "state sanctioned lynching by means of gun violence" after prosecutors declined to press charges against the two police officers responsible for his death. 

Sterling, a black man, died in July 2016 after being shot multiple times at close range by two white Baton Rouge police officers.

The officers alleged Sterling was reaching for a gun while being held to the ground. Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry said Tuesday the officers "acted as reasonable officers under existing law and were justified in their use of force."

Sterling has been a trending topic throughout the day on social media, with many outraged over the decision. Federal prosecutors declined to press civil rights charges against the officers last year.

Kaepernick, who went unsigned during the 2017 NFL season, began kneeling during the national anthem in part due to the slayings of black men by police. He has become a champion for civil rights across the United States while also being perhaps the most polarizing figure in sports—dividing many across political and racial lines.

Kaepernick is currently suing the NFL for collusion, claiming team owners collectively decided not to sign him because of his national anthem protests.