Colin Kaepernick Announces Scholastic Contract to Create Multiple Children's Books

Super Bowl quarterback, activist, leader and, now, publisher.

Kaepernick Publishing announced a multi-book publishing deal with Scholastic that will see Colin Kaepernick help publish a number of books. The first one will be a picture book titled I Color Myself Different and will be illustrated by Eric Wilkerson and published in April 2022.

The book was inspired by one of Kaepernick's experiences as a child who was adopted by a white family. In kindergarten, he picked up a brown crayon for himself after coloring his family with a yellow crayon.

"This story is deeply personal to me, and inspired by real events in my life," Kaepernick said. "I hope that it honors the courage and bravery of young people everywhere by encouraging them to live with authenticity and purpose. I'm excited for Kaepernick Publishing to be collaborating with Scholastic on books with Black and Brown voices at the forefront. I hope that our books will inspire readers to walk through the world with confidence, strength, and truth in all they do."

Kaepernick, who made national headlines by kneeling during the national anthem to protest police brutality and racism as a player, played quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 through 2016 and helped lead them to the Super Bowl and NFC Championship Game in back-to-back years during the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

He also threw for 16 touchdowns and just four interceptions during the 2016 campaign but has not been signed to a team since opting out of his deal.