Kayla Morris has been identified as the San Francisco 49ers cheerleader who caused a stir last Thursday by kneeling on the field during a game against the Oakland Raiders.
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Morris reportedly works in sales when she’s off the field and has been a member of the Gold Rush Cheer Squad for two seasons, according to the 49ers website.
Morris took a knee on the same team former quarterback Colin Kaepernick was booted from for his protest against police brutality.
On Thursday, the protest was perhaps the first for a cheerleader this season, ABC News reports. The photo of the kneeling cheerleader went viral and was the first of a cheerleader engaging in protest since a Georgia Tech cheerleader Raianna Brown took a knee last year.
Kayla, a 49ers Gold Rush Girl cheerleader, takes a knee during the national anthem. pic.twitter.com/mvWpxG7vXY
— Tony Bravo (@TonyBravoSF) November 3, 2018
Kaepernick is now suing the NFL, claiming that he was blackballed from being hired after leaving the 49ers because of his activism.
Carolina safety Eric Reid, a former San Francisco 49er, is also dedicated to the cause of fighting racial injustice and recently he took a knee on the sidelines of the Panthers-Baltimore Ravens game and received some support outside of the stadium as well.
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Like Kaepernick, Reid is suing the NFL over collusion for keeping him out of the league because of the protests. While detractors continue to insist wrongly that the former Super Bowl quarterback Kaepernick is simply out of the league due to lack of talent, no such case can be made for why the former Pro Bowl defensive back Reid was left out.
Many shared supportive messages when Morris took her stand.
“Proud of you!” wrote Toni Flores, a member of the military, wrote on Facebook. “Don’t believe any caption that speaks for the military as a whole, many veterans support your cause and your rights!”
No word if Kayla Morris will face any disciplinary action for taking one for the team.