Beyoncé and Jay Z embraced their political passions as they
joined protesters standing up against the death of Trayvon Martin.
The musical power couple attended a rally in New York City
on Saturday to speak out against the Stand Your Ground laws that led to George
Zimmerman being acquitted for the murder of African-American 17-year-old last
week.
They joined forces with activist and MSNBC host Al Sharpton,
who introduced them as 'two of the baddest artists of all time' to the huge
gathering.
'Jay Z and Beyoncé said they didn't want to speak and they
didn't come for a photo op,' Sharpton continued, reported the Huffington Post.
'Beyoncé put a beautiful message up on Instagram. Let me tell you, that before
a lot of you were down, Jay Z always supported us.
'Jay Z told me, "I'm a father. Beyoncé is a
mother." We all feel the pain and apprehension - the laws must protect
everybody, or it doesn't protect anybody. We do not come from hate, we come
from love of children.'
Their presence came a day after Beyoncé tweeted,
'#actnow4Trayvon,' to her 10 million Twitter followers, along with details of
how to join the protest and log onto Move.org to sign a petition.
As racial rights supporter Sharpton spoke vehemently, the
musical royalty stood by somberly, with Beyonce wearing funeral black and Jay Z
in a white T-shirt, jeans and a black suit jacket.
On July 13 after the 'not guilty' verdict for Zimmerman was
announced, the former Destiny's Child singer called for a moment of silence
during her Mrs. Carter Show World Tour concert at Bridgestone Arena in
Nashville, Tennessee.
'I’d like to have a moment of silence for Trayvon,' the pop
star said as the stage grew dark with just a few key lights shining. She then
sang the chorus of I Will Always Love You, before transitioning into her hit
Halo.
'Trayvon Martin had the civil right to go home that day,'
Sharpton went on to tell the cheering crowd at outside One Police Plaza in
Manhattan on Saturday, as chants of 'I am Trayvon Martin' and 'No justice, no
peace!' dominated the event.
He told the gathering of demonstrators that when he first heard
about the Trayvon Martin case, he immediately flew to Sanford, Florida, to a
rally that was organized in the young man's name.
Prior to boarding the plane, Sharpton learned that his own
mother had passed away. 'But I went down because if I couldn't hug my mother, I
could hug Trayvon Martin's mother,' he said.
Despite the tragic circumstances, the Crazy In Love singer
delighted fans who got to shake her hand as she came and spoke to many of them
individually.
As a mother to 18-month-old daughter Blue Ivy, Beyoncé knows
the depth of a parent's love, and offered her sympathy to Trayvon's own mother,
Sybrina Fulton, as they passed in the crowd.
New York was just one of hundreds of cities in America
hosting protests on Saturday that were organised by Sharpton's National Action
Network.
Jay Z's political stance came the morning after he played a
sell-out show at New York's Yankee Stadium as part of the Legends of Summer
tour that he is currently on with pop star Justin Timberlake.
The pair honoured Trayvon during the concert with a moving
rendition of Forever Young as Jay Z shouted to the audience, 'Everybody put a
cell phone and light it up... let's light the sky for Trayvon Martin tonight in
here.'
They were joined by Alicia Keys on stage, who rocked a sexy
pair of shiny latex leggings, platform white and gold trainers and a large
yellow belt.
Source: Daily Mail UK
No comments:
Post a Comment