"To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs," filmmaker Ava DuVernay wrote ahead of the kickoff for Super Bowl LIII Ava DuVernay Says She’s Boycotting the 2019 Super Bowl in Support of Colin Kaepernick Ava DuVernay is standing in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick. The Selma filmmaker, 42, voiced her support for the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback — who started the #TakeAKnee movement to protest racial injustices — on Twitter on Sunday and said she won’t be tuning in to watch Super Bowl LIII. Get push notifications with news, features and more. “I will not be a spectator, viewer or supporter of the #SuperBowl today in protest of the @NFL’s racist treatment of @Kaepernick7 and its ongoing disregard for the health + well-being of all its players. To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs. It’s not worth it. #ImWithKap,” DuVernay wrote. split1 Credit: Charles Sykes/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock; Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Last year, DuVernay shared a similar message in support of Kaepernick, 31, ahead of the big game. “The only football player I’m checking for this weekend. ‘Cause I cannot pretend that everything is okay with this enterprise. #ImWithKap,” she shared on Twitter, along with a picture of her posing with Kaepernick. Many fans have opted to boycott the Super Bowl and the NFL itself in support of Kaepernick and all players who have been criticized or penalized for taking a knee. Kaepernick started the #TakeAKnee movement in 2016, when he declined to stand for the national anthem at games in protest of police brutality and the racial injustices faced by people of color in America. While the silent act of protest quickly spread to other NFL teams, it also generated substantial backlash and ignited a political firestorm. In March 2017, the quarterback opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers. Kaepernick hasn’t been hired by another team since and, in an ongoing lawsuit, is suing the NFL for colluding to keep him unsigned because of his politics. An arbitrator recently threw out the NFL’s request to dismiss the case. Along with DuVernay, stars like Nick Cannon and rapper Common voiced their support of Kaepernick on Sunday. Ahead of Maroon 5’s Pepsi halftime show, frontman Adam Levine said the feelings and voices of those who have opted to boycott the Super Bowl will not be neglected during their performance. “They will be [heard] — that’s all I want to say because I don’t want to spoil anything,” Levine explained to Entertainment Tonight. “And once again, I like to think that people know where I stand as a human being after two decades doing this,” he continued. “I’m not a speaker. I’m not a public speaker. I do speak, but it’s through the music.”<doc-sep>Ava DuVerney is boycotting the Super Bowl. (Photo: Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for the 2015 Tribeca film Festival) High-profile figures are announcing their intentions to sit out this Super Bowl Sunday. Following Cardi B’s refusal to perform during the halftime show alongside Maroon 5 — though she will star in a Super Bowl commercial for Pepsi — director Ava DuVernay has announced via Twitter that she’s tuning out. “To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs,” the Selma filmmaker said, adding the #ImWithKap hashtag to indicate her support of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. DuVernay also accused the NFL of subjecting Kaepernick — who has been without a team over outcry of his taking a knee during the national anthem to protest police brutality against people of color — to “racist treatment.” I will not be a spectator, viewer or supporter of the #SuperBowl today in protest of the @NFL’s racist treatment of @Kaepernick7 and its ongoing disregard for the health + well-being of all its players. To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs. It’s not worth it. #ImWithKap pic.twitter.com/fNEeke0crs — Ava DuVernay (@ava) February 3, 2019 DuVernay’s protest comes weeks after Common voiced similar support for Kaepernick, saying the NFL “basically blackballed” the athlete. The Oscar winner is also sharing the #ImWithKap hashtag, with LeBron James, Angela David, Nick Cannon and Rosanna Arquette among those showing support. "You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. And you have to do it all the time." Dr. Angela Davis. Much Love to @Kaepernick7! pic.twitter.com/YL20cowSz9 — Imagine Justice (@ImaginexJustice) February 3, 2019 Me too — Rosanna Arquette (@RoArquette) February 3, 2019 #ImWithKap #7Challenge! I am donating $7 to Colin’s Know Your Rights Camp. The number 7 symbolizes Kap’s jersey number. I challenge you to donate $7 to @YourRightsCamp and nominate 7 others to do the same. Go to https://t.co/Bonrfn2Jf2 and click donate. @Kaepernick7 pic.twitter.com/upSma6Hcxs — Nick Cannon (@NickCannon) February 3, 2019 We will not be supporting the #SuperBowl due to the NFL's racist treatment of Colin Kaepernick. A new report shows that the NFL polled fans to see if Kaepernick being on a team would hurt the brand: https://t.co/OQnHDMmdMi #TakeAKnee #ImWithKap pic.twitter.com/zE2j8heXjU — The Root (@TheRoot) February 3, 2019 And what’s Super Bowl Sunday without the Super Bowl? For some, it’s Janet Jackson Appreciation Day, a nod to the pop star who was famously excoriated after her “wardrobe malfunction” — unfairly, many say — during the 2004 halftime show. Story continues Super Bowl, what's that? I rather celebrate #JanetJacksonAppreciationDay Queen finally got in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame after years of haters trying to deny her effortless impact! pic.twitter.com/rKQkMNIPru — Ernest Owens (@MrErnestOwens) February 3, 2019 Meanwhile, Maroon 5 band member PJ Morton spoke to People about fending off criticism for headlining this year’s halftime show. “I think there are plenty of people — a lot of the players, to be honest — who support Kap and also do their job for the NFL,” Morton said. “I think we’re doing the same thing. We can support being against police brutality against black and brown people and be in support of being able to peacefully protest and still do our jobs. We just want to have a good time and entertain people while understanding the important issues that are at hand. “You can get bogged down by those things; we’re not focusing on the negative now [while] being aware, being open and definitely not ignoring the voices,” he added. “But we’re definitely not focusing on the things that don’t help, that are counterproductive. We’re blocking out the noise. We’re just doing what we do. We look to have a good time.” Read more from Yahoo Entertainment:<doc-sep>Ava DuVernay was among the first celebrities to announce Sunday that she will boycott Super Bowl 53 to protest what she described as the NFL's "racist treatment" of Colin Kaepernick. DuVernay explained in a tweet that she was not watching the event because of the NFL's "ongoing disregard for the health" and well-being of its players. "To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs," she said. "It’s not worth it." The film director ended her statement with the hashtag #ImWithKap, which was also used in tweets by Nick Cannon and rapper Common. Cannon tweeted that he was donating $7 to the Know Your Rights Camp, a free campaign for youth funded by Kaepernick, and urged his followers to do the same. Common meanwhile tweeted an image of himself and activist Angela Davis wearing a jersey with Kaepernick's number seven. "We are never assured of justice without a fight," he tweeted, quoting Davis. NBA stars LeBron James and Kevin Durant were also photographed wearing Kaepernick jerseys this weekend. Kaepernick, a former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, sparked debate in the league and across America in 2016 when he began kneeling during the national anthem before games to protest police brutality and racial inequality. Kaepernick has accused the league’s owners of colluding to keep him off the field because of the player protests during the "Star Spangled Banner."<doc-sep>
(UPDATED with Colin Kaepernick response) The biggest TV event of the year is losing one of Hollywood’s most high-profile directors as a viewer. Ava DuVernay tweeted that she will not be “a spectator, viewer or supporter” of Super Bowl LIII due to what she called the NFL’s “racist treatment” of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick. She concluded her message by writing, “To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs. It’s not worth it,” closing with a reprise of hashtag #ImWithKap. Nick Cannon tweeted his support soon after DuVernay took her stand. Common tweeted Saturday in support of #ImWithKap and The Chi creator Lena Waithe re-tweeted Kaepernick from Saturday showing famed activist Angela Davis wearing a jersey with his number seven and an #ImWithKap message. NBA stars LeBron James and Kevin Durant also wore Kaepernick jerseys this weekend. And later today, the former San Francisco 49er himself responded to DuVernay’s declaration: Whether or not a boycott gains steam or can manage to make a dent in the 100 million-plus viewership that the NFL’s big game has seen in recent years is far from a given. CBS, which has sold out all ad inventory on the game, is banking on today being a $500 million revenue day company-wide. However, with Super Bowl ratings among the 18-49 demo falling to new lows of late and advertisers watching with careful eyes, the possibility of any eyeballs drifting away from the screen is not one any stakeholder enjoys contemplating. For the NFL, whose TV ratings rebounded 5% this season, the tweets extend the long-running controversy over Kaepernick, who found himself shunned by the league in 2016 after kneeling during the national anthem as a protest against police violence. The discord bookends season that began with the quarterback breaking out in a Nike “Just Do It” ad in September that sparked divergent and passionate reaction. DuVernay has long been allied with Kaepernick and the causes he has championed. She spearheaded a high-profile event last month called #HowWeHeal: Celebrating the National Day of Racial Healing. Speakers that day included Judd Apatow, Melissa Etheridge and DuVernay’s collaborator on Selma, actor David Oyelowo. Kaepernick, 31, has a pending grievance against the NFL, alleging a conspiracy by owners over his social justice activism, which networks and league officials said played a role in two years of ratings declines in 2016 and 2017. Last year, an arbitrator rejected the NFL’s request to dismiss the grievance. I will not be a spectator, viewer or supporter of the #SuperBowl today in protest of the @NFL’s racist treatment of @Kaepernick7 and its ongoing disregard for the health + well-being of all its players. To watch the game is to compromise my beliefs. It’s not worth it. #ImWithKap pic.twitter.com/fNEeke0crs — Ava DuVernay (@ava) February 3, 2019 #ImWithKap #7Challenge! I am donating $7 to Colin’s Know Your Rights Camp. The number 7 symbolizes Kap’s jersey number. I challenge you to donate $7 to @YourRightsCamp and nominate 7 others to do the same. Go to https://t.co/Bonrfn2Jf2 and click donate. @Kaepernick7 pic.twitter.com/upSma6Hcxs — Nick Cannon (@NickCannon) February 3, 2019