“We need justice for George Floyd,” Beyoncé said in a personal video message. “We all witnessed his murder in broad daylight. We’re broken and we’re disgusted. We can not normalize this pain.” “I’m not only speaking to people of color, if you’re white, black, brown and anything in between, but I’m also sure you feel hopeless by the racism going on in America right now,” the mother of three shared.
“No more senseless killings of human beings. No more seeing people of color as less than human. We can no longer look away. George is all of our family and humanity. He is our family because he is a fellow American,” she continued.
Beyoncé also said “there have been too many times that we’ve seen these violent killings and no consequences,” adding, “Yes someone’s been charged, but justice is far from being achieved.”
The star concluded, “Please sign the petition and continue to pray for peace and compassion and healing for our country. Thank you so much.” The Grammy-winner included links to multiple petitions on her website, including one on Change.org that was launched on Tuesday and has amassed over 8 million signatures as of May 31.
Earlier this week, a video showed a Minneapolis police officer, who has since been identified as Derek Chauvin, placing his knee firmly on the back of Floyd’s neck next to a patrol car. In the footage, Floyd — who later died in police custody — can be heard groaning in pain while bystanders plead with Chauvin to be more gentle. Three other police officers were also present for the incident.