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Week 1 of the NFL season is officially here, and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick still does not have a job. That fact does not sit well with a portion of the football-watching public, and that group of people plans to make their feelings known throughout the season. 

An advocacy group, Standing 4 Kaepernick, will, according to its Facebook page, be organizing protests at every NFL stadium this season. According to a report from Pro Football Talk, the rally at Chicago's Soldier Field is first up, and is expected to draw somewhere between 200 and 500 protesters. 

Kaepernick himself has no involvement with the protests, but according to the group's page, they are being organized to support his and other athletes' ability to engage in peaceful protests without losing their jobs.  

WHY?

Colin Kaepernick's peaceful protest of police brutality and other racial injustices has led to him being blackballed by the NFL.

NFL owners have either decided to punish Kaepernick for taking this stand OR that it's best for business to sweep these issues under the rug. Either option is UNACCEPTABLE! 

The issues Colin raised cannot be ignored, and the people he is fighting for will not be taken for granted. 

The NFL will continue to silence and punish players who speak out against oppression unless we make them pay in terms of their image, ratings, and sales.

BY STANDING 4 KAEPERNICK, WE ARE STANDING FOR PLAYERS' ABILITY TO RAISE AWARENESS BY TAKING SMALL STEPS SUCH AS NOT STANDING FOR THE NATIONAL ANTHEM WITHOUT LOSING THEIR JOBS. 

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WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW...
- Stay tuned to this page for information about upcoming meetings and protest details.
- This is a peaceful protest that is meant to support athletes' ability to engage in peaceful protests. We do not condone ANY violence or damage caused.

Kaepernick himself has made it clear that he will stand for the national anthem if he is signed by a team this season, confident that his actions last year have sufficiently raised awareness to the issue of violence and unfair treatment against people of color. Several other NFL players have taken up his cause and his methods, kneeling, sitting, or raising their fists in the air for the anthem throughout the preseason. Some are expected to continue doing so into the regular season, including stars such as Marshawn Lynch and Michael Bennett.