Ariana Grande skewers the press for distorting Black Lives Matter demonstrations
Photographs of Ariana Grande protesting against the death of George Floyd in Beverley Hills, Los Angeles, California. (Twitter)
Ariana Grande joined thousands of Black Lives Matter protesters Saturday (May 31) as the death of George Floyd continues to cast a specter of racial injustice against the US.
Cities across the country smouldered Sunday as a largely peaceful day of protests on Saturday ruptured into a night of chaos as police pelted protesters with teargas, pepper sprays and volleys of rubber bullets, video footage showed.
Joining protesters against white supremacy and police brutality was Grande who posted to Twitter pictures of herself in the streets of Los Angeles, California.
https://twitter.com/ArianaGrande/status/1267161027042402304
Sweetener singer skewers the press for distorting demonstrations: ‘Cover [the peaceful protests], too.’
“Hours and miles of peaceful protesting yesterday that got little to no coverage,” Grande, 26, wrote.
“All throughout Beverly Hills and West Hollywood we chanted, people beeped and cheered along. We were passionate, we were loud, we were loving.
“Cover this too, please.”
Photographs of the “Rain On Me” hitmaker huddled with marchers holding a cardboard “Black Lives Matter” sign went viral as fans praised the pop star for “inspiring” others to join the resistance movement.
u deserve everything. thank u. pic.twitter.com/yaSM8aEV5s
— Z #blm (@grandesorbiit) May 31, 2020
Ariana Grande tells Black Lives Matters protesters: ‘Stay active, stay energised.’
Across the weekend, Grande amplified the Black Lives Matter demonstrations by sharing links to petitions and fundraising for arrested protester’s bail as well as rallying for people to sign-up to vote as the 2020 elections in November loom ahead.
“Stay active,” the singer stressed Sunday, “stay energised, keep sharing, keep learning.
https://twitter.com/ArianaGrande/status/1267176170124181508
“Sending strength and if you are protesting today, please be safe.”
“Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter LA and White People 4 Black Lives have shared more ways to help,” she added, before sharing a Linktree to a bail fund initiative in Los Angeles.
The death of George Floyd, a Black man brutally pinned to the ground by a white officer’s knee on his throat, has curdled into a weekslong protest bringing to the foreground anger over racial injustice that has simmered for centuries.
“I can’t breathe,” Floyd sputtered in the footage, becoming a rallying cry for demonstrators as armed authorities use physical force to push out protesters.
Demonstrators kneel in front of a police line with their hands up while a police officer takes aim towards the crowd in downtown Long Beach on May 31, 2020. (APU GOMES/AFP via Getty Images)
While the US is dotted with around 140 protests, state leaders wrestle with activating the National Guard, turning the nation into a patchwork of violence. All taking place against the dystopian backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.
