Black Women In Politics, Entertainment & Sports Unite For The Massive #TakeTheKnee Protest
Black women have been on the frontlines fighting for the civil rights of our communities for decades, so it’s no surprise that some of our favorite ladies from across multiple industries aren’t hesitating to join in on the Colin Kaepernick-inspired #TakeTheKnee protest. Rather than shying away from speaking out or remaining silent, these ladies are using their status to take a stand without apology.
Filmmaker and director extraordinaire Ava DuVernay has consistently used her artistic platform to draw attention to the social injustices targeting Black communities through aunthentic story-telling that hits home for many. Her Emmy Award-winning documentary, 13th, specifically touched on the real history that shaped today’s tense relationship between Black communities and law enforcement. Ava joined the #TakeTheKnee protest by calling for a Super Bowl boycott.
ESPN Sports Journalist Jemele Hill has remained at the center of unwarranted controversy since her social media comments describing Trump as a “white supremacist,” in response to his failure to quickly condemn the violent actions of white nationalists that led to the injuries of over a dozen counter protestors and bystanders in August. Nevertheless, she continued to stand her ground, also joining the #TakeTheKnee protest via Twitter on Sunday.
Primetime television queen Shonda Rhimes is only weeks away from kicking off yet another successful run of her TGIT programming on ABC, which includes the final season of Scandal. Shonda has used the critically-acclaimed show to shed awareness on the issue of police brutality in Black communities, with several episodes from last season also drawing attention to the troubling 2016 presidential election. She joined the #TakeAKnee protest taking a quick pause to co-sign Kobe Bryant’s criticism of Trump’s latest actions with a single retweet from her personal Twitter account on Saturday.
The powerful social media movement comes as a result of Trump’s comments during a rally on Friday, where he suggested that NFL owners should fire players who “disrespect our flag” by refusing to stand for the national anthem. Kaepernick initially began the protest on his own when he chose to begin kneeling during the national anthem at NFL games in 2016, as a way of taking a stand against saluting a flag representing a country that continues to “oppress Black communities and people of color.”
Check out the posts below to see more of the women who have spoken out on social media so far.