Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively Stand Up Against Racism, Donate $200k To NAACP Legal Defense Fund
Hollywood couple Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively have donated USD 200000 to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. The actor couple took to their respective Instagram accounts to post a joint statement addressing the ongoing protests against racism in the US. The couple said they want to use their privilege and platform to be an ally.
Thousands of protesters took to the streets across the US to demonstrate against the gruesome killing of George Floyd, a 46-year-old man who was pinned to the ground in Minneapolis last week by a white police officer who kneeled on his neck as he gasped for breath.
Black Lives Matter
In his last moments before death, Floyd said: ''I can't breathe'', which the demonstrators use as a clarion call demanding action against brutality by the police.
Reuters
People from different parts of the world are joining the movement: #BlackLivesMatter
Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash
Agencies
The actor couple took to their respective Instagram accounts to post a joint statement addressing the ongoing protests against racism in the US, and also shared about their contribution to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.
Ryan and Blake posted a heart-wrenching joint-statement, admitting their mistake of neglecting racism around them.
"We've never had to worry about preparing our kids for different rules of law or what might happen if we're pulled over in the car. We don't know what it's like to experience that life day in and day out. We can't imagine feeling that kind of fear and anger. We're ashamed that in the past we've allowed ourselves to be uninformed about how deeply rooted systemic racism is."
Reynolds and Lively said they want to educate themselves and their kids about other people's experiences and also open up about the mistakes they have committed during their lifetime.
Agencies
"We are committed to raising our kids so they never grow up feeding this insane pattern and so they'll do their best to never inflict pain on another being consciously or unconsciously. It's the least we can do to honor not just George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and Eric Garner, but all the black men and women who have been killed when a camera wasn't rolling," the statement further read.
The couple said they want to use their privilege and platform to be an "ally".
Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash
"Last week we contributed $200,000 to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. We stand in awe of this organization and its leader, Sherrilyn Ifill. And this is just a start. We also pledge to stay educated and vote in every local election.
"We want to know the positions of school board nominees, sheriffs, mayors, councilpersons. We want to know their positions on justice. But mainly, we want to use our privilege and platform to be an ally. And to play a part in easing pain for so many who feel as though this grand experiment is failing them."
According to latest reports, around 4,000 people across the United States have been arrested during the massive protests over the death of George Floyd.
