GQ named Colin Kaepernick ‘Citizen of the Year’ for their December issue.
Kaepernick agreed to collaborate with GQ for this project so he can “reclaim the narrative of his protest”, as he explains in his interview. Many people have mixed feelings on him being chosen but I couldn’t think of anyone better.
As you probably already know, Colin Kaepernick isn’t currently playing football because of his choice to protest against systemic oppression. Kaepernick opted out of his contract with the 49ers because they threatened to cut him. He hasn’t been signed to another team since. Despite him being ready to play again, there are no teams willing to sign him because of the controversy that will cause. Many people including Trump took it upon themselves to change the meaning of Kaepernick’s protest. He could’ve easily apologized for his protest and kept his opinions to himself moving forward in order to be signed to another team but what he’s doing for the community means more to him than playing football.
Kaepernick is a man who practices what he preaches so besides protesting he’s very active in the community. He pledged to donate $1 million dollars to organizations who are working to help oppressed communities and he’s already donated $900k. He’s also funding a campaign called Know Your Rights Camp to teach teens of color the importance of higher education, self-empowerment, and instructions on how to interact with law enforcement in several situations.
Kaepernick gave up his dream to start a movement.
I never thought that back in 2016 when he knelt for the first time, it was going to lead to him being blackballed and out of the NFL for so long. I can’t even imagine what it would feel like to lose my career because I chose to speak up on a issue I wanted to bring awareness to. Most people wouldn’t follow through with doing this if their career was on the line. It will be 2 years in 2018 since he’s played in the NFL and Kaepernick still hasn’t changed his opinion to try to get his job back. I respect him for his leadership and commitment to this issue because it’s so easy for people to talk about an issue but not actually take action. GQ choosing Kaepernick for this title is also huge for a media company because it’s such a controversial topic that companies choose to not talk about. I’m glad he was chosen for this and got to speak on what he’s doing so he can clear the air at least a little and not allow people to define what his movement is about.