Megan Rapinoe has had her say on the pro-Trump mob who stormed the U.S. Capitol last week, and the USWNT star isn’t at all surprised with what happened.
[ MORE: How to watch PL in the USA ]
Contrary to many others being outraged by the scenes, Rapinoe expected it to happen.
Via NBC Sports’ On Her Turf website, the two-time World Cup champion had this to say to reporters about the current situation.
“This is America. Make no mistake about it, we showed our true colors,” Rapinoe said. “The reason why we are here is because we never actually had a reckoning of what our country really is… this was about white supremacy and holding up white supremacy and I hope that we can see this and move forward with justice.”
Rapinoe added: “Our chief political leader inciting an actual, real-life, murderous, and deadly insurrection against his own government, against his own people, against his own party… To see where we’ve come in these four years has been devastating.”
The midfielder, 35, is currently with the USWNT in Florida at a January training camp as the reigning World Cup champions will play two friendlies against Colombia on Jan. 18 and Jan. 22.
Here’s more from On Her Turf as Rapinoe continues to lead the fight against racial and social injustice.
Speaking up against racial and social injustice is nothing new to Rapinoe. Neither is the criticism that often accompanies it.
Ahead of an NWSL game on September 4, 2016, Rapinoe took a knee during the national anthem, a nod to Colin Kaepernick‘s protest against racism and police brutality. When she continued to kneel at games, U.S. Soccer implemented a policy requiring its players to “stand respectfully” during the playing of the national anthem. The controversial policy was ultimately rescinded last June, with Rapinoe receiving a personal apology from U.S. Soccer’s new president.
While competing at the 2019 World Cup, Rapinoe made headlines after saying she wouldn’t be going to “the f—ing White House” if the team won, a remark that President Trump responded to in a series of tweets, saying, in part: “Megan should WIN first before she TALKS!”
Trump’s tweets did not age well. Rapinoe not only helped the U.S. win a fourth World Cup title, but she was also the recipient of the Golden Boot and Golden Ball awards (given to the top scorer and tournament’s best player, respectively). (She also, of course, still has control of her own Twitter account.)
Some of Rapinoe’s activism has even targeted her federation: In 2019, Rapinoe was one of 28 players who filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against U.S. Soccer. At the 2020 SheBelieves Cup last March, in response to a U.S. Soccer court filing that claimed female players had less “skill” and “responsibility” than their male counterparts, Rapinoe and her teammates turned their warm-up jerseys inside out, hiding the name of the federation on the crest.
