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John Boyega's incredibly powerful speech at a Black Lives Matter protest

Photo credit: Dan Kitwood - Getty Images
Photo credit: Dan Kitwood - Getty Images

From Cosmopolitan

John Boyega gave an overwhelmingly powerful speech at a Black Lives Matter march in London yesterday [3 June], following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

The Star Wars actor attended the Justice For Black Lives demonstration in Hyde Park, where he was given a megaphone to speak to the crowd of around 15,000 people in a passionate address.

As well as showing his support for getting justice for George Floyd, the 28-year-old also referenced the tragic deaths of Black Americans Sandra Bland and Travyon Martin, while also touching on Stephen Lawrence's murder in Southeast London in 1993.

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

He said:

"We are a physical representation of our support for George Floyd. We are a physical representation of our support for Sandra Bland. We are a physical representation of our support for Trayvon Martin. We are a physical representation of our support for Stephen Lawrence. I’m speaking to you from my heart. Look, I don’t know if I’m going to have a career after this, but f*** that.

"Today is about innocent people who were halfway through their process, we don’t know what George Floyd could have achieved, we don’t know what Sandra Bland could have achieved, but today we’re going to make sure that won’t be an alien thought to our young ones.

"Every black person in here remembered when another person reminded you that you were black. So none of you out there, all those protesters on the other side, protesting against what we want to do, protesting against what we want to try and achieve, burn you, this is so vital."

The Star Wars actor continued,

"I need you to understand how painful this sh*t is. I need you to understand how painful it is to be reminded every day that your race means nothing and that isn’t the case anymore, that was never the case anymore.

"Black men we need to take care of our black women. They are our hearts, they are our future, we cannot demonise our own, we are the pillars of the family.

"Imagine this: a nation that is set up with individual families that are thriving, that are healthy, that communicate, that raise their children in love, have a better rate of becoming better human beings and that’s what we need to create.

"Black men, it starts with you, it’s done man, we can’t be trash no more. We have to be better. Black lives have always mattered. We have always been important. We have always meant something. We have always succeeded regardless. And now is the time. I ain’t waiting."

Photo credit: Getty Images
Photo credit: Getty Images

Hundreds of thousands of people have since shown their support on Twitter for John, with everyone from Jordan Peel and Charlie Brooker to the Star Wars franchise insisting they will support him always.

What a powerful speech.

Find out more about Justice For Black Lives here. Find out what you can do to demand justice for Black lives here.



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