On Monday morning, GQ revealed that they have named Colin Kaepernick their "Citizen of the Year" as part of their "Men of the Year" cover series. Kaepernick agreed to be photographed by the magazine, and while he didn’t speak to GQ for his cover story, the magazine gathered 10 of his peers, including J. Cole, to speak on his behalf. You can go here to see what they had to say about him and the protest that he helped spark by taking a knee during the national anthem before games last NFL season.
Just hours before GQ unveiled their Kaepernick cover, Jay Z took the stage on the Miami stop of his 4:44 Tour and addressed the protests that Kaepernick started. He reminded those who came to see him perform that taking a knee during the anthem is not about protesting the flag or the military.
"I want y’all to understand…when people are kneeling and putting their fists up and doing what they’re doing, it’s not about the flag. It’s about justice. It’s about injustice," he said. "And that’s not a black or a white thing. It’s a human issue. It’s a human issue. Everybody should feel the same way. If your 16-year-old child left the house and didn’t come back, everyone should be affected. That’s not a black or a white issue. That’s a human issue. That’s a young person who lost their life senselessly."
Jay Z has used the stops on his 4:44 Tour to address a number of issues like this. He spoke out against the "inmate" comments made by Texans owner Bob McNair in late October during one. During another show, he responded to Meek Mill’s recent prison sentencing by calling it "unjust and heavy-handed." You can watch him make his latest comments about the NFL protests here.
