Beyoncé is making her voice heard after the tragic killings of the Black men Alton Sterling and Philando Castile.
Earlier Thursday, she posted a heartfelt statement decrying police brutality. But she didn’t stop there.
The singer had a stop in Glasgow as part of her Formation World Tour and used her platform to deliver a pair of powerful messages. First, she called for a moment of silence while she displayed a huge list of Black victims of police brutality.
Beyoncé just paused her Glasgow show for a moment of silence, displaying victims of police brutality. #AltonSterling pic.twitter.com/3T8KyAkfIA
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) July 7, 2016
The list included Sandra Bland, Eric Garner, Oscar Grant, Tamir Rice, Sterling, Castile, and more than a dozen other names. “And Countless Others,” was its chilling conclusion. But she didn’t stop there.
Her second tribute was a stirring a capella rendition of “Freedom,” which we have embedded below.
Beyonce performs an a capella of her song 'Freedom' to pay tribute to all the lives lost by police brutality. pic.twitter.com/sVm76qmdSK
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) July 7, 2016
The fact that Beyoncé makes a statement all the way from Scotland speaks to the enormity of the issue. Her tribute is simple, just a moment of silence and a song, but her position as a major recording artist means that this is a statement that will echo around the world. Past stars made huge efforts to depoliticise their messages, like Michael Jordan saying "Republicans buy shoes too," but the current generation sees that ignoring these issues is no longer an option.
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