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J. Cole to NFL Players: Much Respect, But More Than Kneeling Needs to be Done

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J. Cole incorporates politics into his live performances. (Shareif Ziyadat/WireImage)

J. Cole believes NFL fans who really back Colin Kaepernick may have to make a challenging sacrifice. The rapper proposed that if supporters of the free agent quarterback are really down for his cause, they need to stop watching football. Period.

While the rapper applauded players on teams like the New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars who found “the courage to kneel” on Sunday, Sept. 24,” he said there’s a better way to make the NFL hurt.

Cole also took a swipe at team owners, like Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who decried President Donald Trump’s put down of football stars exercising their first amendment rights.

Kraft said he felt “deep disappointment” with the Commander-in-Chief, according to the Associated Press.

J. Cole acknowledged that even though he’s only a rapper, he had a bold idea on how to effectively boycott the NFL.

And he wants fans to keep that protest going.

J. Cole realized how difficult it would be for fans to give up their beloved sport. After all, it was initially hard for him during the preseason. However, when realizing the sacrifices generations before him made — like refusing to the take the bus during the Jim Crow era — he was okay with not watching.


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While several people backed the rapper’s proposal…

…others expressed a bit more hesitation.

J. Cole’s messages came the same day more than 200 NFL stars knelt, sat or linked arms in protest. The demonstration followed Trump’s call Sunday for any athlete who protests “The Star-Spangled Banner” to be fired.

The boycott isn’t just limited to the NFL, either. Oakland A’s catcher and MLB rookie Bruce Maxwell knelt. On Saturday, he became the first in the league to do so. No strangers to standing up for causes, the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx linked arms during the anthem Sunday.

“Our players are some of the most socially conscious that you will ever find,” WNBA commissioner Lisa Borders told reporters at a pregame press conference Sunday, according to USA Today. “You have seen that in the years before I got here, and I’m sure it will continue in the future.”

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