Rapinoe: Trump fans are no fans of ours
Megan Rapinoe had a clear message for any fans of the U.S. women’s national soccer team who support the Trump administration and last week’s storming of the Capitol:
“Don’t bring that (BS) here.” Rapinoe, 35, the national team’s outspoken leader and social justice activist, watched in horror from the team’s January training camp in Orlando as white supremacist and domestic terrorists wreaked havoc on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
A photo was snapped and shared of someone trying to return home after the insurrection wearing a USWNT sweatshirt and a TRUMP 2020 face mask, which of course caught the attention of the team and Rapinoe.
“Just from a personal standpoint, I feel like I can probably speak on behalf of my teammates. That is not the kind of fan that we will welcome,” Rapinoe said. “The U.S. crest is not to be confused with anything that has to do with white supremacy, anything that has to do with the Trump administration and anything that has to do with that divisive culture that we saw on the Capitol. Rapinoe has publicly tried to use her platform to help raise awareness of various racial, gender-based and other social issues, for years.
In 2016, she started kneeling during the playing of The Star Spangled Banner at national team games in solidarity with since-exiled NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick. The reason was to protest the police killings and racial profiling of unarmed Black and Brown men, women and children around the country. Rapinoe was also penalized for kneeling, though she retained her spot on the roster.
“This is America. Make no mistake about it,” Rapinoe also said in response to the attempted coup. “I think we showed, very much, our true colors. This is not the first time we’ve seen a murderous mob like that. Unleashing a white supremacy mob is nothing new to America as people of color, Black and Brown, know that very well.”
The USWNT will play Colombia on Jan. 18. It’ll be the first time in a year Rapinoe will take the field for the team amid the ongoing pandemic.