CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick and comedian Dave Chappelle are among eight people being saluted by Harvard University for their contributions to black history and culture.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick and comedian Dave Chappelle are among eight people being honored by Harvard University for their contributions to black history and culture, the university announced Thursday.

CAMBRIDGE, MASS. (WHDH) - Controversial quarterback turned civil rights activist Colin Kaepernick took the stage at Harvard Thursday night, one of eight people to accept the university’s black culture award.

In a fiery introduction during the W. E. B. Du Bois Medal Ceremony, Professor Cornel West praised Kaepernick for giving up a lucrative sports career in exchange for fighting social injustices.

Colin Kaepernick was awarded the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal by Harvard University on Thursday.

The medal is considered "Harvard's highest honor in the field of African and African American studies" and is awarded "to individuals in the United States and across the globe in recognition of their contributions to African and African American culture and the life of the mind."

Du Bois medals honor outstanding contributions in black arts, culture

Former quarterback’s stand is a reminder the injustice highlighted by raised fists 50 years ago has not gone away

Colin Kaepernick is among eight people set to be honored at Harvard University next month.

The former NFL star-turned activist will receive the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal at the Hutchins Center Honors in Cambridge on Oct. 11. It’s described as “Harvard’s highest honor in the field of African and African American studies.”

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann Jackson, a recipient of the National Medal of Science, is among eight recipients of the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal to be honored at the sixth annual Hutchins Center Honors presented by the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University.

Athlete and activist Colin Kaepernick and activist and comedian Dave Chappelle are among the eight distinguished people who will receive the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal at the sixth annual Hutchins Center Honors presented by the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University.

Filmmaker Ava DuVernay, actor and rapper LL Cool J, and six others received the W.E.B. Du Bois Medal—Harvard's highest honor in the field of African and African American Studies—before a zealous crowd in Sanders Theatre Wednesday afternoon.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — "Selma‚" director Ava DuVernay and rapper LL Cool J are among the recipients of Harvard University's 2017 W.E.B. Du Bois medals honoring those who have made significant contributions to African and African-American history and culture.

On Wednesday night, October 4th, filmmaker Ava DuVernay and Hip-Hop icon and actor LL Cool J were honored at Harvard University's Hutchins Center for African and African American Research with the Hutchins Center Honors W.E.B. Du Bois Medal for their substantial contributions to African and African American history and culture.