Colin Kaepernick says the pigs on his socks were only meant to represent ‘rogue cops’

Colin Kaepernick made more news Thursday when photos of him wearing socks with pictures of pigs dressed like police officers began attracting attention.

The San Francisco 49ers quarterback addressed the situation with an Instagram post later in the morning.

“I wore these socks, in the past, because the rogue cops that are allowed to hold positions in police departments, not only put the community in danger, but also put the cops that have the right intentions in danger by creating an environment of tension and mistrust,” Kaepernick wrote.

He added that he wore the socks before he started sitting down during the national anthem prior to the 49ers’ preseason games this year. He told reporters Sunday he’s protesting social injustice.

“There is police brutality,” the quarterback said. “People of color have been targeted by police. So that’s a large part of it, and they’re government officials. They are put in place by the government. So that’s something that this country has to change. There’s things we can do to hold them more accountable, make those standards higher.”

Here’s Kaepernick in the pig socks:

Of course, “pigs” is a common derogatory term used for police officers. Kaepernick appears to have worn those particular socks more than once, starting Aug. 10.

Kaepernick seems to be a fan of novelty socks. Here’s another photo from training camp:

Colin Kaepernick, front, and Blaine Gabbert go through core exercises on July 31. (Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press)

(Test)

The San Francisco Police Officers Assn. was already upset with Kaepernick because of his comments over the weekend. Can’t imagine it will be too pleased with the pig socks.

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UPDATES:

12:35 p.m.: This article was updated with Kaepernick’s statement on Instagram.

This article was originally published at 9 a.m.