Jay-Z and his activist group Team ROC took out a full-page ad ‘in dedication to George Floyd’ that appeared in major newspapers across the nation on Tuesday.
Team Roc also published the ad on their official Instagram page, which featured a poignant excerpt from a speech Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave in Selma, Alabama in 1965.
The ad also showcased the 50-year-old rapper’s virtual signature and the signatures of various attorneys, fellow activists, and victims of police brutality who partnered with Roc Nation to make the ad possible.
Dedication: Jay-Z and his activist group Team ROC took out a full-page ad ‘in dedication to George Floyd’ that appeared in major newspapers across the nation on Tuesday
The ad ran in the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Philadelphia Enquirer, and others on Tuesday, and, according to CNN, more ads are set to debut on Wednesday.
Some of the signatures present belonged to the parents of Botham Jean, DJ Henry and Antwon Rose II, who were all unarmed, African-American men that died at the hands of police.
Other specific signatures belonged to author Van Jones, Charlamagne tha God, attorney Angela Rye, an attorney for the Floyd family, as well as The Innocence Project and Until Freedom.
‘A man dies when he refuses to stand up for that which is right. A man dies when he refuses to stand up for justice. A man dies when he refuses to take a stand for that which is true,’ read one fitting portion of King’s speech.
Personal: The ad also showcased the 50-year-old rapper’s virtual signature and the signatures of various attorneys, fellow activists, and victims of police brutality who partnered with Roc Nation to make the ad possible; Jay-Z pictured in 2018
‘So we’re going to stand up amid horses. We’re going to stand up right here, amid the billy-clubs. We’re going to stand up right here amid police dogs, if they have them. We’re going to stand up amid tear gas!’
On Monday, Jay-Z shared a personal statement regarding a conversation he had with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz that pertained to the George Floyd case.
‘After our very earnest conversation, thank you to Governor Walz for doing what’s right and calling in Attorney General Keith Ellison to take over the George Floyd case,’ he began.
Jay-Z noted that the conversation between him and Walz was a ‘human’ one.
Doing his part: On Monday, Jay-Z shared a personal statement regarding a conversation he had with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz
George Floyd: George Floyd – an unarmed, African-American male – experienced a horrific death at the hands of police in Minneapolis, Minnesota last week; Floyd pictured on Rihanna’s Instagram on Friday
‘Now I, along with an entire country in pain, call upon AG Ellison to do the right thing and prosecute all those responsible for the murder of George Floyd to the fullest extent of the law.’
He wrote that this is ‘just a first step’ and that he is ‘more determined to fight for justice than any fight my would-be oppressors have.’
George Floyd – an unarmed, African-American male – experienced a horrific death at the hands of police in Minneapolis, Minnesota last week.
In the horrifying video footage of Floyd’s death, he is seen saying that he can not breathe as officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck.
Enough is enough: The death of 46-year-old Floyd has sparked days of sometimes violent demonstrations in Minneapolis and other US cities over police brutality against African-Americans; Protesters pictured in Minneapolis on May 28
Eventually he went silent and limp, and he was later declared dead.
Protests swelled after federal authorities said Thursday that they were making the case a top priority but announced no arrests at that time.
The Minneapolis policeman accused of killing Floyd, Chauvin, was taken into custody Friday and charged with third-degree murder, officials said.
The death of 46-year-old Floyd has sparked days of sometimes violent demonstrations in Minneapolis and other US cities over police brutality against African-Americans.
First step: The Minneapolis policeman accused of killing Floyd, Chauvin, was taken into custody Friday and charged with third-degree murder, officials said; Protesters pictured in Minneapolis on May 28