*Colin Kaepernick was gifted honorary eagle feathers as he attended the annual Indigenous People’s Sunrise Gathering on Alcatraz Island on Thursday, an event also known as “Un-Thanksgiving Day.”
The gathering celebrates the lengthy occupation of the infamous prison island by Native Americans between 1969 and 1971.
“Today, I was on Alcatraz Island at the Indigenous People’s Sunrise Gathering, in solidarity with those celebrating their culture and paying respects to those that participated in the 19-month occupation of Alcatraz,” Kaepernick said in a tweet Thursday.
The former NFL quarterback has been mired in controversy since refusing to stand for the national anthem before 2016 games, in protest against racial inequality. He remains an unsigned free agent and has filed a grievance with the NFL alleging he’s being blackballed over his anthem protest.
After receiving two eagle feathers from a Native American elder, Kaepernick gave a brief speech.
“I’m very humbled to share this space with all of you,” Kaepernick said in the video posted on Twitter. “Our fight is the same fight. We’re all fighting for our justice, for our freedom. And realizing that we’re in this fight together makes us all the more powerful.”
Watch Kaep’s video below:
Today, I was on Alcatraz Island at the Indigenous People’s Sunrise Gathering, in solidarity with those celebrating their culture and paying respects to those that participated in the 19 month occupation of Alcatraz in an effort to force ?? to honor the Treaty of Fort Laramie. pic.twitter.com/KdNtY3dp72
— Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) November 24, 2017
The Alcatraz occupation started on Nov. 20, 1969, led by Mohawk activist Richard Oakes and Native American college students, according to the National Parks Service, which runs Alcatraz. “Once the occupiers had established themselves on the island, organization began immediately,” according to the National Parks Service. “An elected council was put into place and everyone on the island had a job; security, sanitation, day-care, school, housing, cooking, laundry, and all decisions were made by unanimous consent of the people.”
The Alcatraz protesters wanted the deed to Alcatraz, and to establish an Indian university, cultural center and museum, according to the parks service.
The federal government took a mostly hands-off approach, but also shut off electrical power and took away a barge providing fresh water to the island.
Ultimately, President Richard Nixon approved a plan to remove the protesters when the fewest were on Alcatraz, and on June 10, 1971, armed federal marshals, FBI agents and special-forces police “swarmed the island and removed five women, four children, and six unarmed Indian men,” according to the Parks Service.
However, the occupation, directly or indirectly, led the government to adopt Indian self-determination as official U.S. policy, according to the parks service.
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
