Critic Reviews
Great
Based on 4 reviews on
Riveting and inspiring first-person stories of how "taking a knee" triggered an awakening in sports, from the celebrated sportswriter
"The Kaepernick Effect reveals that Colin Kaepernick's story is bigger than one athlete. With profiles of courage that leap off the page, Zirin uncovers a whole national movement of citizen-athletes fighting for racial justice." --Ibram X. Kendi, National Book Award-winning author of Stamped from the Beginning and How to Be an Antiracist
In 2016, amid an epidemic of police shootings of African Americans, the celebrated NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick began a series of quiet protests on the field, refusing to stand during the U.S. national anthem. By "taking a knee," Kaepernick bravely joined a long tradition of American athletes making powerful political statements. This time, however, Kaepernick's simple act spread like wildfire throughout American society, becoming the preeminent symbol of resistance to America's persistent racial inequality.
Critically acclaimed sports journalist and author of A People's History of Sports in the United States, Dave Zirin chronicles "the Kaepernick effect" for the first time, through interviews with a broad cross-section of professional athletes across many different sports, college stars and high-powered athletic directors, and high school athletes and coaches. In each case, he uncovers the fascinating explanations and motivations behind a mass political movement in sports, through deeply personal and inspiring accounts of risk-taking, activism, and courage both on and off the field.
A book about the politics of sport, and the impact of sports on politics, The Kaepernick Effect is for anyone seeking to understand an essential dimension of the new movement for racial justice in America.
Praise for The Kaepernick Effect:
"A collection of compelling stories that put the reader at the center of the tumultuous, frightening, and stirring protests for racial justice that, when put together, reveal the ways taking a knee transformed sports and the broader society. . . . [An] extraordinary book.""Across decades, Zirin has been a guide, machete-slicing through the thicket of marketing and mythologizing in sports to get fans closer to the uncomfortable truths. From the right side of history, intent on fairness and justice, he has been warning us about the liars, thieves, hypocrites, and grifters hiding in plain sight in America's playpen. He has an uncommon grasp of his subject matter, a sculptor's attention to detail and a historian's expertise, and the combination is worthy of your applause. Kaepernick's work will echo over the years. So, too, will Zirin's."
--Dan Le Batard
How many Black people have to die at the hands of racist cops before white America listens to those voices? The Kaepernick Effect needs to be read by those who continue to deny racism and police brutality."
--Chris Lamb, co-author of Sports Journalism: A History of Glory, Fame, and Technology