the political climate

J. Cole Is Encouraging Everyone to Boycott the NFL

Photo: Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images for The Meadows

In the midst of President Donald Trump attacking professional athletes on social media for kneeling during the pregame national anthem, J. Cole returned to Twitter this weekend to offer insight into how the general public can fight back. (He’s worked closely with Colin Kaepernick over the past year, and the two are friends.) J. Cole’s answer is simple, perhaps even a bit unusual: Stop watching football all together. “The real power comes from you deciding to not watch,” he tweeted on Sunday morning. “Your eyes translate to advertising money for the League and it’s owners. 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.”

While joking that he’s “just a rapper,” J. Cole outlined how this practice could be executed, right down to branching out from the NFL to its official sponsors. “If a boycott doesn’t force them to action, don’t even trip. This is where the real flex happens,” he wrote. “Black people spend a lot of money with NFL corporate sponsors. White people who don’t fuck with white supremacy spend a lot of money too. So, next you turn your attention to these sponsors. Pick one of the biggest ones and say, do you agree with black balling players when they speak out against oppression?’ ‘If not, why are you spending all this money with a League that clearly condones that? You know what, I don’t think I can spend my money with you no more until you fix this.’ Repeat this with another company, and another.”

And for the skeptics out there who just want to kick back and watch their favorite sport, J. Cole says don’t fret: “It was hard during preseason and the first week. But then I was like, wait, is it actually hard?” We guess not.

J. Cole: Boycott the NFL for Colin Kaepernick