Colin Kaepernick protest: Trump tells NFL player to quit US

NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick should "find a country that works better for him" said Donald Trump after the player's national anthem protest.

The Republican presidential nominee weighed in on the San Francisco 49er's decision to sit during The Star-Spangled Banner in a pre-game ceremony.

Mr Kaepernick said he will continue to sit out the national anthem until he sees improvements in US race relations.

Mr Trump called the quarterback's controversial stand a "terrible thing."

"I think it's a terrible thing, and you know, maybe he should find a country that works better for him," Mr Trump told KIRO radio in Seattle. "Let him try. It won't happen."

Mr Kaepernick, 28, stirred controversy on Friday when he sat during the national anthem before the San Francisco 49ers played the Green Bay Packers in an exhibition game.

The National Football League (NFL) player refused to stand in protest of the oppression of people of colour in the US, he said.

Racial tensions are mounting in the US, where a string of recent police killings and subsequent revenge killings have sparked protests across the nation.

The US national anthem dos and don'ts

code is enshrined in law but not enforced
stand and face the flag
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military in uniform and veterans should salute

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An NFL spokesman said players were "encouraged but not required" to stand during the anthem.

The White House also added to the debate, saying Mr Kaepernick's protest was "objectionable" but that he had a right to express his views.

"Even as objectionable as we find his perspective, he certainly is entitled to express them," said White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest.

The NFL world has been divided over it.

"I disagree. I wholeheartedly disagree," said Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints quarterback. "Not that he wants to speak out about a very important issue. No, he can speak out about a very important issue.

"But there are plenty of other ways that you can do that in a peaceful manner that doesn't involve being disrespectful to the American flag."

But Jim Brown, former Cleveland Browns running back, said: "He's within his rights and he's telling the truth as he sees it and I am with him 100 percent."

Colin Kaepernick

28 years old, mixed race, adopted and raised by white parents in Wisconsin
Joined the San Francisco 49ers in 2011
Former starter who led the team to the NFL's title game, the Super Bowl, in 2013, which they lost to the Baltimore Ravens. Since demoted to back-up
Has signature touchdown celebration known as kaepernicking, involving the flexing and kissing of his right bicep
Set an NFL record for the most rushing yards by a quarterback (181) in the 2012 season play-offs