Boyega makes emotional plea
LOS ANGELES John Boyega was an unstoppable force at Tuesday’s Black Lives Matter protest in London — one of the city’s first major events in response to the death of George Floyd in the custody of Minneapolis law enforcement.
The Star Wars actor, a fierce advocate for the Black Lives Matter movement, spoke passionately to thousands gathered at Hyde Park for the afternoon protest, and joined demonstrators in the street as they marched to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s residence, with helicopters circling ahead and traffic — often honking and beeping in support — at a standstill.
“I’m speaking to you from my heart,” Boyega said. “Look, I don’t know if I’m going to have a career after this, but f--- that.”
Gripping a megaphone, Boyega was all emotion, at one point leading a chorus of protesters demanding justice for Belly Mujinga — a black railway ticket officer who died of COVID-19 after being spat on by a member of the public infected with the virus.
“This is a moment where we are now a physical representation of our mentality, of our shared idea that black lives matter,” declared Boyega, who was frequently stopped in the streets by members of the public praising his advocacy and pulling him into an embrace.
“We have the right to live a balanced and healthy life. We are a physical representation of our unity, and it’s very important at this time that we stick together in mind, in spirit and in body.
“Today is about innocent people who were halfway through their process,” said the Peckham-born actor. “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.”
Boyega continued: “Every black person here remembered when another person reminded you that you were black ... I need you to understand how painful this s-- t is. I need you to understand how painful it is to be reminded every day that your race means nothing.”
The protest came a few days after Sunday’s protest in Trafalgar Square, where hundreds knelt in memory of Floyd, who died at the hands of law enforcement, sparking ongoing protests in the U.S. and ugly clashes with authorities around the country.
The U.K.’S black community similarly has a fraught relationship with police, which famously came to a head in August 2011 with the Tottenham Riots, which centred on the police shooting of Mark Duggan.
Duggan’s face appeared frequently on posters carried by demonstrators Wednesday, alongside depictions of Mujinga and Floyd. More protests are planned this weekend in Parliament Square and at the U.S. Embassy.
Variety