The Black Lives Matter movement has been sweeping not just the US, but the entire world. The movement is not just about police brutality, justice for George Floyd, and the many other Black people killed by police, but also about systemic racism that has existed in this country for the last 400 years.
Many celebrities have taken to social media to show their solidarity, as well as to use their platform to educate their followers about how they can help the cause.
And yesterday, Paul McCartney showed his support for the movement:
In fact, in his post, Paul revealed that back in 1964, the Beatles refused to play a show in Jacksonville, Florida, because it was for a segregated audience.
Paul explained that the band took their stance because they knew it was wrong, saying:
In 1964, the Beatles were due to play Jacksonville in the US and we found out that it was going to be to a segregated audience. It felt wrong. We said, "We’re not doing that!" and the concert we did do [in Jacksonville] was to their first non-segregated audience. We then made sure this was in our contract. To us it seemed like common sense.
Now, it's important to note that Paul's message isn't about the Beatles taking the stance, but that almost 60 years later we're still dealing with that same level of racism.
Paul added:
I feel sick and angry that here we are, almost 60 years later, and the world is in shock at the horrific scenes of the senseless murder of George Floyd at the hands of police racism, along with the countless others that came before.
Paul ended his statement by saying that being silent was not an option.
