Colin Kaepernick has accused his white adoptive parents of “perpetuating racism” by telling him as a teenager that cornrows looked unprofessional, and says he had to deal with “very problematic things” growing up in their home.

Copernicus was adopted as an infant by Rick and Theresa Kaepernick, a white couple from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. They moved to Turlock, California when he was four.

They had two biological children, but lost two sons to congenital heart defects.

Kaepernick — a former NFL player who led the “take a knee” movement — says that while he knew they “loved him,” there were “very problematic things” he was “going through.”

Kaepernick’s parents, Rick and Teresa, adopted him when he was five weeks old. They already had two biological children, but lost two sons to congenital heart defects

Talking to CBS to promote his new graphic comic memoir, Kaepernick cited his mother telling him that picking corn was unprofessional.

Kaepernick as a high school football star

He claims she told him he “looked like a little thug” when he showed her the hairstyle.

“I know my parents loved me.

“But there were still very problematic things that I went through,” he said.

Kaepernick’s parents have not publicly responded or commented on his crusade against racism.

In a scathing ESPN op-ed before he launched his anti-NFL movement, Kaepernick’s parents spoke of their joy at bringing him home.

His father, who has been the head of a cheese company for most of his career, said: “Everything went very smoothly.

“I know adoption doesn’t usually go that smoothly, but it did.

“Colin has never had a problem with adoption.

“The only difference is his skin is a little darker than ours.”

Copernicus with his father, who was the head of a food company

Kaepernick’s biological mother gave him up when he was five weeks old. She was 19

His mother said: “I will never forget that day.

“They brought him in a stroller and sat him down. His mother was there.

“I looked at her and she nodded and I just lifted him out of the bassinet. The minute I took him in my arms, I just cried.

“We gave her a big hug. And she needed a couple more minutes. And then we left.”

His biological mother was 19 and decided to give him up when he was five weeks old.

Kaepernick attended John H. Pittman High School, a public high school in Turlock, where he was a football star.

He then attended the University of Nevada, Reno on a football scholarship before graduating in 2011. After graduation, he joined the San Francisco 49ers.

In 2016, Kaepernick started the anti-racism movement when he knelt during the national anthem at NFL games to protest police brutality against black people. That angered the league and others, who said it was disrespectful. Others have adopted it around the world

Kaepernick and his mother, Teresa, pictured on social media ahead of his anti-racism crusade