Colin Kaepernick didn’t hit the field for the 2017 football season, but that didn’t stop the unemployed quarterback from hitting his goal of donating one million dollars of his salary to charity.
The 30-year-old athlete launched his #MillionDollarPledge campaign in September 2016 announcing that he would donate $100,000 a month for 10 months to various organizations across the US that focused on helping their communities.
For the last 10 days of the campaign, Kaepernick enlisted some of his famous friends to match his $10,000 donation to a charity of their choice each day.
Colin Kaepernick (left) completed his million dollar pledge to charity on Wednesday with the help of Usher (right). Kaepernick and Usher are pictured above at the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Hosts Annual Ripple Of Hope Awards Dinner on December 13, 2017 in New York
Kaepernick and Usher donated $20,000 to the Atlanta organization Helping Oppressed Mothers Endure or H.O.M.E.
On Wednesday, more than a year after he started the pledge, Kaepernick reached his goal with the help of Usher.
‘It has been an honor for me to serve the people with my #MillionDollarPledge. The thanks and gratitude from each organization has been immense. Being able to learn and see how each organization used the donations was a key part of the Pledge. I wanted to make sure that every dollar was going towards making real change in our communities,’ the NFL star wrote on Facebook.
‘Thank you to everyone who has supported me, matched me and my pledge and most importantly the people. I know that we still have a lot of work to do, however, by getting everyone involved, I truly believe that we can all achieve and move mountains towards our goals for Social Justice.’
Kaepernick and Usher teamed together to donate $20,000 to Helping Oppressed Mothers Endure (H.O.M.E.), an organization in Atlanta that helps single mothers during economic hardship.
‘I wanted to recognize and also support an organization that I felt is amazing for single mothers in Atlanta,’ Usher said in a video Kaepernick shared on his Twitter page. ‘This was an opportunity to do something amazing and you did it. You have raised your million dollars. I’m happy to be a part of that completion of that million dollars. This is a result of us helping each other. We all become stronger.’
Other celebrities who helped Kaepernick complete his campaign included Serena Williams, Chris Brown, Jhene Aiko, Snoop Dogg, Steph Curry, rapper TI, Jesse Williams, Joey Badass, Kevin Durant and Meek Mill, who donated from prison.
Kaepernick was thrust into the national spotlight after he began kneeling during the National Anthem during football games. Kaepernick is pictured center with his San Francisco 49ers teammates Eli Harold on the left and Eric Reid on the right during a game in New York on October 16, 2016
The 30-year-old athlete announced in a Twitter video that his million dollar pledge campaign in September 2016 saying he would donate $100,000 a month for 10 months
Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Chris Brown and Meek Mill were just a few of the celebrities who helped Kaepernick complete his pledge
More than 40 charities benefited from Kaepernick’s charitable efforts. A few of those included Angel By Nature in Houston, Imagine LA in Los Angeles, Mothers Against Police Brutality in Dallas, Advancement Project in Washington DC and Communities United for Police Reform in New York.
A full list of the charities can be viewed on the athlete’s website Kaepernick7.com.
Kaepernick, who was named Citizen of the Year by GQ in 2017, announced his #MillionDollarPledge one month after he was thrust into the national spotlight for kneeling during the National Anthem at games to protest police brutality and the oppression of people of color.
The NFL quarterback opted out his contract with the San Francisco 49ers in the spring and has been a free agent ever since. In October, Kaepernick filed a grievance against the NFL for possible collusion. The case is still pending.
More than 40 charities across the United States received donations during Kaepernick’s million dollar pledge campaign