GQ made a bold move that is certain to receive mixed reaction among readers when the magazine published its "Citizen of the Year" issue with a cover graced by none other than Colin Kaepernick on Monday.
Along with Kaepernick's bust on the cover, readers are presented with a feature story titled "Colin Kaepernick Will Not Be Silenced." The piece speaks about the former San Francisco 49'ers quarterback's evolution from when he first graced GQ's cover as an outstanding athlete in 2013 to his relevance as an activist in 2017.
The article makes reference to Muhammad Ali's expulsion from boxing after his refusal to submit to the Vietnam War draft and gets in-depth perspectives from some of his closest friends and ideological allies.
Among those interviewed for the piece were his loving partner Nessa, rapper J. Cole, filmmaker Ava Duvernay, activists Linda Sarsour, Carmen Perez and Tamika Mallory, Ameer Hasan Loggins, the great Harry Belafonte, and former teammate and heir to his National Anthem protest Eric Reid.
While the article celebrates Kaepernick's refusal to speak with the press as having grown into an ironic source of power for his stance, Reid expounds on how protesters are now trying to grab the bull by the horns to get the message back on track so that it once again aligns with where the former NFL star was coming from. He also states the objectives of Kaepernick's fight in the league going forward; starting with an effort to get him back on the field.
"My goal this year has been to get the narrative back on track," Reid said. "We started having communications with the NFL, and they said they're going to help us make progress on these issues. But the next step is to get Colin back in the NFL. Because he's the one that started this. I think we're finally getting where me and Colin envision this going. Now it's time for him to get back in the league."
Kaepernick kept his reaction to receiving the "Citizen of the Year" honor humble, tweeting: "I'm honored to be recognized by GQ Magazine as Citizen of the Year."
