LeBron James, Justin Bieber and More Stars Speak Out About George Floyd’s Death

“I do things every day without fear, because I am privileged, and I am privileged every day because I am white,” wrote Harry Styles on Instagram, alongside an image that read “Black Lives Matter.” He went on, “Being not racist is not enough, we must be anti racist. Social change is enacted when a society mobilizes. I stand in solidarity with all of those protesting. I’m donating to help post bail for arrested organizers. Look inwards, educate yourself and others. LISTEN, READ, SHARE, DONATE and VOTE. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. BLACK LIVES MATTER.” 

Captioning a split photo of Floyd being pinned to the ground and Colin Kaepernick kneeling in protest with the caption, “This…Is Why,” LeBron James wrote, “Do you understand NOW!!??!!?? Or is it still blurred to you??”

“When will the majority of protests & outrage be led by white people & police officers everywhere? These are your people killing us. Why are OUR voices & outrage LOUDER THAN YOURS during these times? WE DIDN’T DO THIS. I’m tired of US HAVING TO DO THE WORK YOU SHOULD BE DOING,” Janelle Monáe expressed on Twitter.

“For the last few days, the magnitude of devastation, anger, sadness I’ve felt has been overwhelming to say the least! Watching my people get murdered and lynched day after day pushed me to a heavy place in my heart!” wrote Rihanna on Instagram, alongside a photo of George Floyd. “To the point of staying away from socials, just to avoid hearing the blood curdling agony in George Floyd’s voice again, begging over and over for his life!!! The look of enticement, the pure joy and climax on the face of this bigot, murderer, thug, pig, bum, Derek Chauvin, haunts me!! 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 that fucking normal??? If intentional MURDER is the fit consequence for “drugs” or “resisting arrest”….then what’s the fit consequence for MURDER???! #GeorgeFloyd #AhmaudArbery #BreonnaTaylor.”

“since watching the most devastating and completely heartbreaking video showing the murder of George Floyd earlier this week I haven’t been able to get his face and his words out of my mind,” Kylie Jenner wrote on Instagram, alongside a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. “i’ll never personally experience the pain and fear that many black people around the country go through every day but i know nobody should have to live in fear and nobody deserves a death like George Floyd and too many others. speaking up is long overdue for the rest of us. we’re currently dealing with two horrific pandemics in our country, and we can’t sit back and ignore the fact that racism is one of them. i fear for my daughter and i hope for a better future for her. my heart breaks for George Floyd’s family and friends. Don’t let his name be forgotten. keep sharing, keep watching, keep speaking out, because it’s the only way we can come together to help bring this much needed change and awareness. Rest In Peace, George Floyd.”

“This week has been heartbreaking for so many reasons,” wrote Jennifer Aniston, alongside a video of the late James Baldwin on Instagram. “We need to acknowledge that the racism and brutality in this country has been going on for a long time – and it’s NEVER been okay. As allies, who want equality and peace, it’s our responsibility to make noise, to demand justice, to educate ourselves on these issues, and more than anything, to spread love. How much more time are we willing to let pass without change? HOW MUCH MORE TIME? Text FLOYD to 55156 and sign the @colorofchange petition to have all four of the officers who killed #GeorgeFloyd arrested.” 

“George Floyd was killed at the hands of 4 officers in Minneapolis on Monday. The video is abhorrent. He should be alive. Getting killed by the police is the 6th leading cause of death of young black men in this country,” expressed Mandy Moore on Instagram. “White friends: We can’t let our discomfort, ego, or belief that this work doesn’t include us, prevent us from acknowledging our privilege and that we have the burden of dismantling white supremacy. We do. We can not be complacent. We can not be silent. We need to have this conversation with our families and friend and coworkers. Let’s turn outrage into action.”

“Past few days I’ve been stunned trying make sense of George Floyd’s death. The video. The plea for breath. The callous response. The racism. The killing. This is our ongoing disease. I’ve had cops in my family. Good men,” wrote Dwayne Johnson on Instagram in a lengthy post. “And there’s a cop code, granting you the authority to use force if your life is in danger. But when a man is handcuffed, on the ground, no longer a threat, with your brothers in arms standing around watching and he struggles to say, “please I can’t breathe” when your knee is on his neck.. not his back, but his neck – cutting off his air. Cop code must become moral code. Ethics code. HUMANITY code. Knowing that if you don’t ease up, then that man is going to die. So when you decide to not ease up, your intention is to kill. And that’s what this was. George Floyd, said “officer I can’t breathe” as he struggled for air. He said these words a total of 15 times. Not once. Not twice. 15 times. These officers will be charged, I’m positive of that. Held accountable. But then where’s the greater accountability? The leadership to healing. More importantly, the leadership to EQUALITY. We ultimately win when we can normalize equality. I’m so sorry to the Floyd family. My heart breaks for you. Let the process begin now. #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd #NormalizeEquality.” 

“Every name that trends by the hands of police brutality and/or racism in this country gets increasingly and BEYOND disheartening,” Justine Skye wrote on Instagram. “As I sit with friends discussing the absurd tragedies happening everyday and wonder wtf can we do, I can’t help but think… what can we do? Spread awareness to the situation, protest (cause more tragedy for our sisters and brothers). What is so difficult for our government to understand and WHY the hell are they not doing a damn thing about it? I pray that we try to raise the youth to be better, to make this country a better place. God help us, watch over us and the family and friends of #georgefloyd.”

“Enough is enough! What will it take ? A civil war ? A new president? Violent riots ? It’s tired ! I’m tired ! The country is tired !You don’t put fear in people when you do this you just show how coward YOU ARE ! And how America is really not the land of the free,” wrote Cardi B on Instagram. 

“Last night at dinner, my 7-year-old asked why all the grown ups were so upset. We spoke to him about what happened to George Floyd. Being a white mother trying to explain racism and bigotry to her white son, who did not understand why anyone would treat another human being that way, was heartbreaking,” shared Reese Witherspoon on Instagram. “But not nearly as heartbreaking as being a victim of one of these senseless, violent, unconscionable crimes. Not nearly as heartbreaking as being one of the families who have experienced loss and harassment and discrimination daily. Not nearly as heartbreaking as being a mother who lives in fear of what will happen to her children in this world.
I grew up going to church. We were taught that we were all the same in the eyes of God. We all breathe the same air. We all bleed the same blood. But that is not what I grew up seeing. It was as hard for me to reconcile the difference between what I was taught in church and what I see in the world. I don’t want that for my kids. Or for yours.
We have to be held accountable for what is happening in this country. What happened to George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery – and countless others – can not go without justice. Please talk to your children about racism, privilege, bigotry and hate. If you aren’t talking to them, someone else is.”

“This just burns,” actor John Boyega tweeted. “Seems to be a never ending cycle. The murderers need to be charged severely. Even in the face of death this man was given zero empathy. #RIPGeorgeFloyd #BlackLivesMatter #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd.”

“I am speaking solely to white people. Especially the loud ones—bc I hear you. And most of all, to myself,” wrote Penn Badgley on Instagram. “We can’t *not* have internalized the racism of our society. Are there other white people we deem “the problem”? I think, the rest of the human family cannot endure our impatience with each other any longer. We have to listen, learn and teach each other. This doesn’t mean social change amounts to emotional work, but it does start there when you wake up, and end there when you go to sleep. Everyday. This is part of what sustains constructive, lasting social change. #justiceforgeorgefloyd #blacklivesmatter.” 

“We have to address hundreds of years of oppression of black people,” Billie Eilish wrote in the lengthy Instagram statement slamming the All Lives Matter movement and calling out white privilege. “The slogan of #BlackLivesMatter does not mean other lives don’t. It’s calling attention to the fact that society clearly thinks black lives don’t f-cking matter. And they f-cking do. It means Black. Lives. F-cking. Matter. Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter. Say it again. #JusticeForGeorgeFloyd.”

“Rest in Peace #GeorgeFloyd. this has got to stop. it’s hard to watch a video so foul. It’s hard to think that this is still happening,” Bella Hadid began her in-depth post on Instagram. “But it is reality. And These police officer need to be accountable to the maximum degree for their obviously disgusting and horrific actions. I feel so sick, sad and sorry for George Floyd and his family. There is nothing anybody could say to me that makes this encounter even remotely ok,” she continued. “He was a peace activist and a man of respect and promise. There is no reason for anyone to be handled like that especially someone that is so unaggressive. Please spread this message.”

“Enraged. Sickened. Heartbroken. But never surprised. This happens way too often – and the videos that go viral are not isolated events,” Gigi Hadid wrote on Instagram. “It seems that only when caught on camera are bigots & MURDERERS even getting “investigated” or fired .. unfortunately, the only way things will start changing is if all these racist, ignorant, monsters (badge &/or not) have to face the consequences- behind bars. && it’s not only an issue with black men being killed by cops … it’s an issue every time we see them being treated, in even non-violent situations, VERY CLEARLY differently than many very-high-risk incidents involving white men; it’s an issue that the President is making dangerous public statements about enforcing the shooting of protesters -rightfully angered by another UNNEEDED KILLING of another black person & DEMANDING JUSTICE WHERE IT IS 100% NEEDED…”

“I feel sick to my stomach,” wrote Shawn Mendes in a statement on Instagram this weekend. “Hearing the sound of his voice crying for help is bone chilling and it f–king breaks my heart I’m so sorry this injustice keeps happening… As a white person, I not only recognize that this is a problem but that I am part of the problem. It’s time for ALL humans to demand change. This needs to be EVERYONES fight. We need to start to really listen to & help amplify black voices. To make their struggles known and to reject racism.”

“You can not fight hate with hate, And I’m tired of being angry…..,” Kelly Rowland said on Instagram. “I just don’t get it.”

“GEORGE FLOYD. If this image doesn’t disturb you and piss you off, then idk,” wrote Steph Curry on Instagram. “I’ve seen a lot of people speak up and try to articulate how fed up and angry they are. All good and well but it’s the same same same reality we live in. George Floyd. George Floyd. George has a family. George didn’t deserve to die. George pleaded for help and was just straight up ignored, which speaks loud and clear that his black life didn’t matter. George was murdered. George wasn’t human to that cop that slowly and purposefully took his life away. #georgefloyd.”

“I have spent the last 24 hours just trying to process this all,” wrote Selena Gomez on Instagram. “Nothing anyone says can take back what has happened. But we can and must all make sure to take action. Too many black lives have been taken from us for far too long. They deserve better. They deserve to be heard. We all need to do better and not sit in silence as this injustice continues. #blacklivesmatter #justiceforgeorgefloyd #icantbreathe.”

“You deserved your breath, your dignity, your life,” Ava DuVernay expressed on Twitter. “Not to die in the street, murdered by a white cop’s knee on your neck. You deserve our tears, our prayers, our rage, our action. We must act – for you – and for all of those were no cameras are present. We must. #GeorgeFloyd.”

“Why?!!!!!!! My heart hurts every time I read the news! When will this stop?? Please help our country regain its humanity! We are all humans who deserve to be protected,” Eva Longoria wrote on social media. “Not killed. Please don’t write any stupid comments. If you are not outraged by this, then unfollow me.”

“My heart can’t take it, seeing what’s happened to #GeorgeFloyd,” Ciara tweeted. “This is eerily similar to the death of #EricGarner. There has to be a stopping point in the process of arresting someone. It’s all senseless.”

“For years, with every horrific murder of an innocent black man, woman, or child, I have always tried to find the right words to express my condolences and outrage, but the privilege I am afforded by the color of my skin has often left me feeling like this is not a fight that I can truly take on my own. Not today, not anymore,” Kim Kardashian wrote on social media.

“After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence? ‘When the looting starts the shooting starts’??? We will vote you out in November. @realdonaldtrump,” Taylor Swift wrote on Twitter after Donald Trump slammed protests across the nation.

“This is what it means to be Black in America. Tried. Convicted. Killed for being Black,” Viola Davis wrote on Twitter. “We are dictated by hundreds of years of policies that have restricted our very existence and still have to continue to face modern day lynchings. Here’s the thing……America will never be great until we can figure out a way for it to work for EVERYBODY!!! ‘I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard and valued’……. RIP George Floyd.”

“My heart breaks for George Floyd, his family and for the people in Minneapolis,” wrote Lady Gaga on Twitter. “Murder is murder. Cops are also citizens, the same rules should apply to them. This is absolutely horrific and if the mayor and DA do not step up it sets a poor example for this entire country.”

“This is not okay. And it will not stop until everyone does their part. Especially white people. I said it recently and I’ll say it again, do not let your discomfort surrounding social issues prevent you from speaking up for those IN DANGER. And reality is, until this STOPS COMPLETELY – THE BLACK COMMUNITY WILL CONTINUE TO LIVE IN DANGER,” Demi Lovato wrote on social media. “DO YOUR PART. THIS INVOLVES YOU TOO. #GeorgeFloyd, I hope you RIP because it isn’t fair so many didn’t do their part to ensure you lived in peace.” 

“THIS MUST STOP,” Justin Bieber wrote on social media. “This makes me absolutely sick. This makes me angry this man DIED. This makes me sad. Racism is evil We need to use our voice! Please people. I’m sorry GEORGE FLOYD.”