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RBG had once called Kaepernick's anthem protest 'dumb and stupid', Internet says she was 'likely a race realist'

Ruth Bader Ginsburg had dismissed Kaepernick's protest as dumb but later on admitted that she should not have been so harsh in her reaction

The late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg reportedly had a lot to say about former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick's anthem protest back in 2016. While promoting one of her books, Ginsburg had called the anthem protest "dumb and disrespectful" before going on to compare it to burning the American flag, reports Fox News.

Yahoo's Katie Couric had interviewed Ginsburg before the 2016 presidential election where she opened up about the Kaepernick. Ginsburg had said at the time, "I think it’s really dumb of them. Would I arrest them for doing it? No. I think it’s dumb and disrespectful. I would have the same answer if you asked me about flag burning. I think it’s a terrible thing to do, but I wouldn’t lock a person up for doing it. I would point out how ridiculous it seems to me to do such an act."

Speaking of the protests, Ginsburg had said, "If they want to be stupid, there’s no law that should be preventive. If they want to be arrogant, there’s no law that prevents them from that. What I would do is strongly take issue with the point of view that they are expressing when they do that." Post Ginsburg's comments, Kaepernick had said it was "disappointing to hear a Supreme Court justice call a protest against injustices and oppression 'stupid, dumb." He had called her criticism "disappointing" and an all too predictable means of undermining Black activists’ efforts. 

Social media users were not pleased with the comments that Ginsburg had made and took to the writing about the same. One such user had shared, "From as far as I can remember she was always a horrible neoliberal corporate tool but she was anti-Trump so her atrocious personality is safe of any critiques." Another social media user had commented and said, "As shown by her only hiring 1 black law clerk out of about 150 clerks, Ruth Bader Ginsburg was likely, deep down, a race realist HBD-type about racial differences in average IQ. She gave lots of interviews, but apparently nobody ever asked her about Jewish vs. black IQ gaps." Another echoed the same saying: "She never had any Black law clerks in her 13 year history of being on DC Circuit court and one in her almost 30 years on SCOTUS."

Yet another commented and shared, "Wow!..Evil..smh Sociopath have Said Good Things to FOOL BlackPpl like she For PoorPpl But had a Sociopathic Mindframe As well Like White Supremacy. They can Cut off a Finger&watch it Fall to The Ground, But Juss because They Pick it Up &Hand it Back to you..They DoneUGood. Sicko."

However, she had taken back her comments days later in 2016, according to Fox 4. She made a statement admitting that her response had not been appropriate. "Some of you have inquired about a book interview in which I was asked how I felt about Colin Kaepernick and other NFL players who refused to stand for the national anthem," the statement read. "Barely aware of the incident or its purpose, my comments were inappropriately dismissive and harsh. I should have declined to respond."  

Kaepernick had made headlines in 2016 when he took the knee during the national anthem. He has not played in the NFL since 2016. Since leaving NFL, Kaepernick has been imersed in many social activism organizations and he also founded the 'Know Your Rights Camp' which aims to teach young children about self-empowerment, American history, and legal rights.  He was also able to strike a multi-million dollar deal with sports giant Nike. 

Ginsburg died on Friday, September 18, at the age of 87 due to complications from her battle with pancreatic cancer.