J. Cole Calls for NFL Boycott
Today, J. Cole took to Twitter to pen a thread imploring his fans to boycott the National Football League. “God bless every player that finds courage to kneel today,” Cole wrote. “But the real power comes from you deciding to not watch.” He continues to outline how he suspects that Colin Kaepernick, now-former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, was denied a job from the league due to his acts of protest by kneeling during the national anthem. “Same ones who speak out against Trump today, are the same ones that denied a qualified man a job because he took a stand against injustice... You and me have the power to deny them our attention ($$ to them) until they make a wrong situation right.” Read the thread below.
J.Cole’s call to action follows Donald Trump’s recent remarks and tweets calling for a NFL boycott until the league fires or suspends players who were “disrespecting our flag and country.” Trump’s comments refer to players who kneel or sit during the anthem following Kaepernick’s protests against racial injustice and police brutality. In response, several team owners and coaches have spoken out in disagreement with Trump, with some teams already planning to abstain from participating in the anthem later today.
Cole is not the first artist to stand in solidarity with Kaepernick. Last night at the Global Citizen festival, Stevie Wonder dropped to his knees on stage, saying: “I’m taking a knee for America.” JAY-Z also took a moment to dedicate “The Story of O.J.” to Kaepernick during his Meadows Festival set.
