Rihanna, photo by lev radin/Shutterstock.com
Rihanna, Beyoncé and Oprah have added their voices to the hundreds of thousands of people condemning racism and police brutality following the death of African American man George Floyd.
A video of the 46-year-old has emerged showing him lying on the ground, handcuffed, with a white police officer’s knee on his neck. Some of his last words were “I can’t breathe.”
“Watching my people get murdered and lynched day after day pushed me to a heavy place in my heart,” Rihanna writes in a social media post.
“I can’t shake this. I can’t get over an ambulance pulling up to an arrest, a paramedic checking a pulse without removing the very thing that’s hindering it! Is this f***ing normal???” she asks, outraged by the injustice of it all.
Oprah has also shared her thoughts: “While pouring coffee, lacing my shoes, and taking a breath, I think: He doesn’t get to do this.”
“We speak your name. But this time we will not let your name be just a hashtag,” Ms Winfrey adds.
“Your spirit is lifted by the cries of all of us who call for justice in your name!”
Meanwhile, Beyoncé has posted links to a number of petitions on her website calling for change and justice for George Floyd and all African Americans killed due to racism and police brutality.