We look up to our heroes… our athletes, entertainers, those who make it out. Society has deemed us only worthy of certain achievements, so when one of us reaches a certain level… it’s hard to admit, personally or publicly, when that person has messed up, or even worse, compromised their values for personal gain.
Obama was the first Black president. And because he was the first, he can do no wrong. I’m sure you’ve heard this argument before… from the loyal Obama supporter who’s willing do dismiss all reasonable logic when it comes to his presidency… just because he was the first.
Jay-Z is viewed by many in a similar light. He’s a billionaire. The first hip-hop artist to ever reach that status. He set the Blueprint, literally, for millions of innercity youth throughout the country. He’s loved and respected for it, and like Obama, for many, he can do no wrong.
But so exists the Obama supporter and the Jay-Z fan who can also call BS when they see it. If you’re a true fan, you’ve earned the right to criticize your heroes when they do unheroic shit.
So when Jay-Z announced a Roc Nation partnership with the NFL to co-produce their halftime shows moving forward with a social justice campaign caveat attached to it, many people applauded the move, but just as many scratched their head and asked why. It’s a legitimate question, and I think the answer rests with his new corporate partner, the National Football League.
Let’s be honest, the NFL has blackballed Colin Kaepernick. It’s no longer about kneeling, because it if was Eric Reid and Kenny Stills who continue to kneel, wouldn’t have a job. This is about principal, and the NFL owners have decided to not sign him and hold firm to that position. While Kaepernick is not without fault, mainly for choosing to settle his collusion case and for signing a lucrative endorsement deal with Nike, you can make the argument that he did what he was sent to do, which was create a movement worthy of discussion and dialogue.
MLK and Malcolm were assassinated for their convictions. Someone inevitably had to pick up the torch to continue their movements. While Kaep is not a traditional Civil Rights leader, nor do I believe he’s striving to be, he’s still alive and well… it’s hard to justify the advancement of his movement without him being a part of it, especially when you’re set up to get a fat check in the process. For many, that’s common sense, and for others, they’re convinced that Jay-Z has a plan and we should give it time to develop. But you see, that’s not how social justice works.
If we appreciate anything about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr and true social justice, it should be The Letter from Birmingham Jail he wrote in 1963 in response to eight white religious leaders of the South who questioned his visit to Birmingham, Alabama. If we just trust King’s intuition and grace in a moment of great contention and perceived controversy in America, we quickly realize that the “wait and see” strategy has never worked for oppressed communities.
“For years now I have heard the word “wait.” It rings in the ear of every Negro with a piercing familiarity. This “wait” has almost always meant “never.” We must come to see with the distinguished jurist of yesterday that “justice too long delayed is justice denied.”” – MLK
So again, why should we wait, continue to wait, and trust that Jay-Z’s social justice campaign will deliver… with not even a blueprint or list of action steps? We shouldn’t.
The NFL wins big with this partnership. They get one of the best entertainers in the world to manage their Super Bowl halftime shows (which frankly have been hit or miss.) And more importantly, this entertainer happens to be Black and perceived to have a lot of leverage within the Black community. What better way to win back the good graces of many of their Black fans than partnering with one of their biggest heroes.
To make things even worse, we find out that Jay has been working on this deal for a year. If this social justice campaign was intended to be impactful, why wouldn’t they at least highlight the objectives of the campaign when they announced the partnership? Are communities of color expected to wait and see what the campaign entails?
Jay chose income over community, personal gain over values, and he’s paying the price for it. A week later and we’re still waiting on any details regarding this social just campaign. We can’t afford to wait… on the NFL, or Jay-Z.