Colin Kaepernick and Bruce Springsteen were presented with a new American Civil Liberties Union honour, the Ralph Ellison Award for Defenders of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in the Arts, Business, Science and Sports, at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on 24 July 2026. The award recognises their contributions to American civil rights advocacy, with Kaepernick's recognition coming a decade after he began kneeling during the national anthem to protest police violence and racial inequality, a stand that cost him his NFL career.

At the ceremony, hosted by actress Laverne Cox, Kaepernick used his acceptance speech to warn that civil liberties, humanity and education were "under attack" and urged attendees to focus on concrete action rather than rhetoric. ACLU president Deborah Archer praised his sacrifice, noting he lost his career and faced sustained public hostility yet never backed down; Kaepernick and former teammate Eric Reid had filed collusion grievances against the NFL in 2017, which were settled in 2019. Springsteen closed the event with a solo performance of "Streets of Minneapolis," later shared on his YouTube channel.