In 2016, Former San Francisco 49ers Quarterback Colin Kaepernick quickly became a household name, politically speaking, after choosing to sit, and more famously kneel, during the national anthem during his preseason games. He would go on to explain that he was “not going to stand up to show pride on a flag for a country that oppressed black people and people of color.” Quickly gaining national coverage, Kaepernick became a topic of discourse within the political world. After adopting this unlikely role, and leaving the 49ers, Kaepernick had difficulty signing on with another team. He concluded that his difficulty in being drafted stemmed from his choice not to stand and accused the NFL of plotting with its teams to blackball Kaepernick from the industry. His becoming a controversial figure began to strongly impact his professional career

In 2018, Nike announced that the face of their 30^th anniversary celebration of the slogan ” just do it” would be Colin Kaepernick. Kaepernick later tweeted “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt” Reactions to Nike’s decision were quick, with an uproar of both applause and anger surging throughout the United States. Boycotts have already begun to take place, with many people claiming they would no longer buy any Nike product so long as they kept Kaepernick as their model. While these boycotts could be seen as economical suicide to some, I see it a different way.

Nike is likely aware that their target demographic in terms of consumers are not the people angered by their choosing Kaepernick. Considering that the majority of these individuals are arguably in the realm of Caucasian, conservative, and older and the fact that Nike tends to try and appeal to younger and liberal consumers shows that their decision is well-thought-out and will yield positive results. This campaign may also resonate strongly with people-of-color who feel marginalized and underrepresented. Simply put, whether one agrees with Nike’s choice, it does not change the fact that they have made an economically sound decision, one that may boost their market immensely.