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Colin Kaepernick Is Releasing a "Deeply Personal" Children's Book Inspired by His Own Adoption

Jul 16 2021 - 9:26am

CAMBRIDGE, MA - OCTOBER 11:  Colin Kaepernick on stage at the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal Award Ceremony at Harvard University on October 11, 2018 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.   2018 Honorees included Kehinde Wiley, Florence Ladd, Kenneth Chenault,  Shirley Ann Jackson, Pamela Joyner, Bryan Stevenson, Dave Chappelle and Colin Kaepernick.  (Photo by Paul Marotta/Getty Images)

Image Source: Getty / Paul Marotta [1]

Colin Kaepernick is contributing to the children's book landscape with a story touching on race, identity, and adoption. The activist and athlete recently announced he would be releasing I Color Myself Different as part of a multibook publishing deal between Scholastic and his own Kaepernick Publishing.

Illustrated by Eric Wilkerson, the picture book is inspired by a distinct childhood memory for Colin: drawing his family in kindergarten and having to pick a different-color crayon for himself after coloring in his parents and siblings. (Colin was adopted by Rick and Teresa Kaepernick, who are white, when he was 5 weeks old. His parents previously had two children, Kyle and Devon.) Though the moment may have illuminated his differences, it also set Colin on a path of embracing his identity and what makes him unique.

"This story is deeply personal to me, and inspired by real events in my life. I hope that it honors the courage and bravery of young people everywhere by encouraging them to live with authenticity and purpose," Kaepernick said in a statement. "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."

I Color Myself Different will be available in print and as an ebook on April 5, 2022. Colin will release additional children's books with Scholastic — though a number has not yet been disclosed — and he is also working on a forthcoming memoir [3].

Image Source: Scholastic [4]


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