Megan Rapinoe

“One of the U.S. Soccer Federation's points is that it's an honour and a privilege to to play for this country, and it is. But we also represent the entire country, and the idea of liberty and justice isn't afforded to everyone.”

“I think that a lot of these cops have been put in very difficult situations and tasked with very difficult jobs with very little training and very little help.”

“I feel in my heart it is right to continue to kneel during the national anthem, and I will do whatever I can to be part of the solution.”

“The climate is much different for men. That stigma is only going to be broken when people come out and see that there is a positive response. That doesn't mean there will be no negative response, but if people can have the courage to be one of the first, which is very hard, those barriers can be broken down very quickly.”

“Being a woman, we talk about equal pay all the time. We're not talking about if you're black or if you are Latina. I would like to get back to that and improving the relationship between the police community and the community of color. I don't know exactly all the right things to say, but I want to engage in that conversation.”

“Putting yourself out there is hard, but it's so worth it. I don't think anyone who has ever spoken out, or stood up or had a brave moment, has regretted it. It's empowering and confidence-building and inspiring. Not only to other people, but to yourself.”

“It seems like I'm thinking 400 hours a day; that's kind of how it feels.”

“I think there's a lot of gay women in sports, and it's widely known in the team; they can live a pretty open lifestyle without being open in the media.”

“Homophobia in male sports is much stronger than in women's sports; the locker room environment is a lot different. It's going to be much more of a brave step, an earthshaking move, for a gay male athlete to come out.”

“Honestly, I feel like we are a walking protest. The fact that we're women professional athletes says that in and of itself. We've been feeling the inequality; we've been struggling with pay equality or whatever it is, or sexism in sports.”

“The more I've been able to learn about gay rights and equal pay and gender equity and racial inequality, the more that it all intersects. You can't really pick it apart. It's all intertwined.”

“As I got more into gay rights, I got more into equal pay, and you just see that it's all connected. You can't really speak out on one thing and not another without it not being the full picture.”

“There are plenty of sports teams that say they're very open and super accepting in the locker room. But are they really? Is it really a safe environment? Have they preset that environment to make these players feel comfortable for coming out? I don't think so because there's none out.”

“It's often hard to just throw money at a problem when you don't really know what the problem is.”

“Even before I came out, looking at me, I've probably looked a little gay. I had short hair, and, you know, it wasn't a huge surprise to people. But some athletes have this image to uphold and may feel like sponsors won't want them if they're gay.”

“You never want to go through a coaching change mid-cycle.”

“When I take a knee, I am facing the flag with my full body, staring straight into the heart of our country's ultimate symbol of freedom - because I believe it is my responsibility, just as it is yours, to ensure that freedom is afforded to everyone in this country.”

“If there's one thing this team doesn't lack, it's competitiveness and a desire to win. No matter if we come off a win or come off a loss, it seems like we don't really care. We're always motivated to win.”

“I feel like everyone is really craving people to come out. People want - they need - to see that there are people like me playing soccer for the good ol' U.S. of A.”

“For us, the conversation is always about getting paid what we feel like we're worth and getting paid as the sport grows and as we help grow the sport.”