Colin Kaepernick and Nessa Diab Publish a Children’s Book and Reveal Their Daughter’s ‘Favorite Pages’ (Exclusive)

“We Are Free, You & Me” is based on the 10 points of the couple’s Know Your Rights Camp

In Colin Kaepernick and Nessa Diab’s household, reading is a big deal — and now the couple has put that passion into their first shared picture book!

The activist and former athlete, 36, and radio host, 40, publish children’s books We are free, you and Iand it revolves around a cause close to them – their Know Your Rights Camp (KYRC) and its 10 points, which range from ‘you have the right to be safe’ to ‘you have the right to be brave are’.

The couple, who share a two-year-old daughter, are donating all proceeds from the book to the organization, whose mission is to “advance the liberation and well-being of Black and brown communities through education, self-empowerment, mass mobilization and the creation of new systems that take the next generation of change leaders to the next level.”

Related: Colin Kaepernick on His New Graphic Memoir, ‘Change the Game,’ and Why Telling His Story Helped Him Grow

In an email interview, the We are free, you and I co-authors said that “this project has been particularly meaningful to us as parents” because the messages it conveys “are what we want to reinforce in our own child.”

“The book celebrates a fictional family spending a day together in their loving community,” say the co-authors. “We hope this book inspires young people to live in light of their own power, truth and self-worth as they embark on their journey through life. Artist Gladys Jose has beautifully captured the vibrancy that shines in the universal joy and promise highlighted in the community’s experiences.”

For more about Kaepernick and Diab and their children’s book journey, read next week’s issue of PEOPLE or subscribe here.

For We are free, you and I is on the bookshelf, Kaepernick (who published his first children’s book in 2022) and Diab chatted with PEOPLE via email to chronicle some of the book’s most impactful moments — not to mention their daughter’s favorite pages !

I love the author’s note at the end talking about the Know Your Rights camp and how you didn’t want your family to be the focus of the book. Can you tell us a little about why that is so important to you and your family?

We wanted to keep the focus of the book on a family engaging each other and their community around their rights and aspirations. The world doesn’t revolve around us, and we want to create stories that everyone can relate to and be inspired by.

Related: Colin Kaepernick Says He Knows His Adoptive Parents ‘Loved’ Him, But Struggled to Embrace His Blackness

Likewise, the principles of KYRC are so powerful. I was particularly struck by the right to be brilliant, which stood out to me. How did you get those rights?

The KYRC 10-points focus on our human rights and are inspired by the Black Panther Party’s 10-point program. These rights are often taken away from us, especially at a young age. Once someone convinces you that you have no rights, you lose all ambition and potential to become the best version of yourself.

Are there any new or developing updates with KYRC that you can share?

KYRC has several exciting initiatives. We just completed our 13th youth camp in Philadelphia and continue our mission to educate and empower young people.

In just over two years, our Autopsy Initiative has already helped 96 families by offering free second autopsies for loved ones lost to police-related deaths, giving them access to crucial information they might not otherwise have had in their quest to closure and accountability.

We also launched the Know Your Rights Camp app, a unique resource that provides state-by-state information about your rights when interacting with police, whether during protests or traffic stops. It also provides great information about KYRC.

You can check out our KYRC podcast, where we explore important conversations about health, education, and activism through art.

That hopeful line at the end, which echoes Arundhati Roy’s quote at the beginning: “Another world is possible… and it is on its way” is so beautiful. Can you explain why you wanted to spread that message?

Hope is extremely powerful! Now combine that with momentum and people will take action. While we are constantly faced with the pressure to simply accept things as they are, we wanted to present an alternative option to relentlessly pursue a better future for us all.

Related: Colin Kaepernick on His New Graphic Memoir, ‘Change the Game,’ and Why Telling His Story Helped Him Grow

I also like the line about “building your team.” What does that mean for you?

It’s all about finding your community! That can be through sports, music, science, art – whatever it is, there is a team that everyone can be part of. It’s powerful to be around people who love you and lift you up during the toughest times. We experience this every time we see our KYRC volunteers – who we only see a few times a year. We all come together from different parts of the country and the world with the goal of giving back. KYRC is our team.

Related: Colin Kaepernick Shares the First Look at His Children’s Book Inspired by a ‘Revelatory’ Childhood Moment

Likewise, the “freedom to breathe” line – and that circle of kids who look like they’re meditating – really struck me. How do you interpret that sentence for yourself?

In a rapidly changing world that is only getting faster, sometimes we need to take a break. Moments of silence, reflection and meditation can revive us and make us more balanced and regulated. This is something I’ve seen Colin do so incredibly well over the years. He now teaches our daughter the same mindfulness/meditation practices as the children in our book. I’m learning along with them as I go, it’s never too late!

I’m always interested in why people write children’s books, in general. Do you read together as a family? Do you have favorite books or authors at home?

Yes, we read together as a family several times a day. It is extremely important to instill this habit in our daughter at an early age. Some of our daughter’s favorites right now are: I color myself differently, Rocket says: look up, Elephants cannot fly, Giraffes can’t danceAnd So much.

I have to say she loves seeing Colin’s face and saying “DaDa.” Those are her favorite pages.

Finally, as a Mets fan, I couldn’t help but notice the little “NY” on the baseball cap on that last spread! Is that an Easter egg?

It’s an Easter egg! There are actually many! The two wearing the “SF” and “NY” hats are two of our lifelong best friends, Katrina and Tony, who helped build KYRC. Nessa met them in The Bay Area over fifteen years ago and we all ended up moving to New York together. Also our family and Eric Reid and his family are in the background. You’ll also see other friends who are also part of KYRC, like Kerem and his family on the last spread.

We are free, you and I will be released on October 1, 2024 and is available for pre-order now wherever books are sold.

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