Why Do People Hate Megan Rapinoe? Backlash Explained
While she has accumulated a wide fanbase, Megan Rapinoe additionally has rather a couple of haters. She has been underneath fire for her activism. Conservatives aren't happy.

Nov. Sixteen 2023, Published 8:24 a.m. ET

The Gist:
- Megan Rapinoe is a former professional football player and activist.
- She refused to satisfy President Donald Trump at the White House.
- She gained backlash for kneeling all through the nationwide anthem.
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American soccer big name Megan Rapinoe is renowned for her athleticism, particularly her time on OL Reign in the National Women's Soccer League and at the U.S. national crew. However, what has made Megan stand out is her position as an advocate and activist. Plus, her ceaselessly brightly dyed hair indisputably is helping too.
Megan received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden and used to be integrated in the TIME 100 Most Influential People of 2020. Much of her advocacy facilities round LGBTQIA+ activism, together with with organizations like the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network and Athlete Ally.
Despite her accolades and activist history, many people don't like Megan. She has faced backlash in the past, particularly from extra conservative circles. So, why do some people hate Megan Rapinoe?
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Why do people hate Megan Rainoe?
Megan's outspoken and politically charged comments have positioned her for harsh grievance. While one fan on Reddit famous that she used to be "cocky," that's best the beginning of the issues people take with Megan. As a lesbian, she regularly faces a slew of sexism and misogyny, simplest made worse by her choice to be vocal and unapologetic.
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During the Trump management, Megan confirmed outward disapproval toward President Trump. In reality, she was once adamant that she wouldn't seek advice from the White House although the U.S. staff received the World Cup. "I'm not going to the f--king White House. No, I'm not going to the White House. We're not gonna be invited. I doubt it," she told Eight by Eight.
The MAGA crew used to be certainly not satisfied about this, especially since Megan and the staff previously met with former President Barack Obama after a win in 2015.
To make issues extra disturbing, Megan known as Trump "sexist," "misogynistic," "racist" and "not a good person," in line with Yahoo! Sports.
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In 2016, Megan kneeled during the national anthem in protest of racial injustice.
Like NFL player Colin Kaepernick, Megan made headlines for opting for to defy conventional customs and kneel right through the nationwide anthem before games. "White people were mad. Whew, were they mad! Conservative commentators in the media immediately started shouting and yelling that kneeling during the anthem disrespected the military," she wrote for The Guardian.
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And Megan was proper. The backlash from her protest rippled through the sporting world, making its technique to the mainstream media. Tension was once so unhealthy that even Trump weighed in on it. "No. I don't think so," he stated to The Hill when requested if he believed Megan's actions to be "appropriate."
In her piece for The Guardian, Megan explained how the outrage gave the look to be a results of people taking her choice "personally." "I hadn’t been expecting anything like this scale of outrage. When I’d campaigned for LGBTQ rights or pay equity, I had always been warmly received," she wrote in reflection.
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Megan was once criticized for outward atheism.
On Nov. 11, 2023, Megan performed within the ultimate sport of her occupation. In the 2023 NWSL Championship recreation, she went down early with an Achilles injury and needed to be subbed out.
After the sport, Megan made a comment insinuating that she used to be an atheist, which sparked some outrage from Christians. “I’m no longer a religious individual or anything else and if there used to be a God, like, that is proof that there isn’t,” Rapinoe stated in a post-game press convention, in step with the New York Post. “This is f--ked up. It’s just f--ked up. Six mins in and I devour my Achilles.”
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Sage Steele, a sports commentator, took factor with this comment. “Narcissism at its greatest,” she posted in response to a video of Megan's comment following the injury.
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This wasn't the first time the two had confronted off. Sage's viewpoints on transgender rights have been prior to now branded as "bulls--t" through Megan right through an interview with TIME.
"When Martina or Sage or whoever are talking about this, people aren’t hearing it just in the context of elite sports. They’re saying, ‘The rest of my life, this is how I’m going to treat trans people,'" she said.
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