Throughout her soccer career, United States Women’s National Team superstar Megan Rapinoe has received a lot of criticism as she has been a vocal advocate for social causes and the LGBTQ community, even going as far as to kneel during the national anthem in protest of racial inequality in the United States. But that does not mean she was proud to represent her country throughout her career.
With her career now over after the USWNT was eliminated from the World Cup this week, Megan Rapinoe made a post on Instagram where she addressed the unfortunate conclusion of her career and expressed gratitude for having the opportunity to represent her country for two decades.
“It has been my honor to play for our country, with so many incredible women, for so many years. Thank you, a million times over,” Rapinoe said at the conclusion of her post.
These comments from Rapinoe align with what her fiancée Sue Bird – a WNBA legend – said about her during a recent segment on ESPN when Bird praised Rapinoe for her “patriotism” and made it clear that her protests during the national anthem were because she “loved her country.”
“Her patriotism has led her to lend her voice to those who need it,” Bird said in the segment. “When she started kneeling to protest racial inequality in the United States, she did it because she loved America and beloved it could be a better version of itself.”
It’s clear that Rapinoe does very much care about her country – just not blindly without seeing its flaws and trying to fix them.
