Kelly Rowland: You Can Not Say Black Lives Matter & Those Lives Not Include Trans!

June 20, 2020 by Chelsea Adjalla in Music with 0 Comments

Kelly Rowland

Kelly Rowland Comes Out In Support Of Black Trans Lives, Says “You Can Not Say Black Lives Matter, And Those Lives Not Include Trans!”

Singer Kelly Rowland took to her Instagram this week (June 18) to show her support for Black Transgender people during the current Black Lives Matter movement. Kelly Rowland wrote the following statement on her Instagram page,

“LET’S BE VERY CLEAR….
You can not say Black Lives Matter, and
Those lives not include Trans!
We must protect each other!
And for those of you, who do not know
about the countless murders that have happened to trans lives, I really need you
To wake up. Educate yourself. It is
Just evil what kind of violence happens.
Because of hate.
In advance to the families of these lives,
I am so sorry! And will continue prayer and fight the fight, so that Love will win through it all! And to the kids who are afraid to show who you truly are, don’t be, you have folks out here who are waiting& fighting for You, with you! Show yourself, your most Authentic self!
#whenlovetakesover????
#blacklivesmatter”

Kelly Rowland was not the only celeb to recently come out and show her support to the black trans community. Rapper and activist Common posted and deleted a tweet in support of the black trans community,

“BLACK LIVES MATTER. BLACK TRANS LIVES MATTER.”

Along the long list of musicians that have supported black trans folks, actor Billy Porter called out the black community’s treatment of black LGBTQ members of the community. Billy Porter likened African Americans’ treatment of gay people to that of white supremacy:

“…Black people, hear me. ‘Cause y’all ain’t gon’ like this one. As a Black queer man in America, my basic human rights have been up for legislation every single day that I have had breath in my body- from all sides! And by that I mean that the Black community’s relationship with the LGBTQ+ community is appalling at best, and eerily similar to that of white supremacists vs. Black folk. Hear me, Black people, and hear me well! I’m calling y’all out right here and right now. You cannot expect our demands of equality to be met with any real legislative policy and change when y’all turn around and inflict the same kind of hate and oppression on us.”

Billy Porter

Billy Porter continued:

“The tragic reality here is that Black trans, as well as gender non-conforming women and men, are being killed in the United States by cis-Black men to such a degree that it is nearly the worst emergency for trans women on the planet. The murders of Black trans women by Black men since 2016 have helped drive the most violent period for LGBTQ+ people on record just this past week during the riots. During the peaceful protests!”

While wearing a shirt that read, “Gay AF,” he, then, used an excerpt from the book, “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make A Big Difference” by Malcolm Gladwell to illustrate the growing global problem of LGBTQ+ violence:

“The books seeks to explain and describe the mysterious sociological changes that mark everyday life. As Gladwell states, ‘Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread like viruses do. And epidemics are sensitive to the conditions and circumstances of the times and places in which they occur.’ So with that said, there’s no doubt in my mind that we as a nation are at a tipping point.”

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The support on behalf of the trans community comes as two black trans women were reportedly murdered in a disturbing trend of violence against the trans community.

According to reports, Riah Milton of Liberty Township, Ohio was lured to an area where three suspects were set to rob her but ended up shooting the victim. Three suspects, the youngest being 14 years-old, have now been identified and two have been arrested.

Riah Milton

According to Out Magazine, in Philadelphia, PA, the dismembered body of Dominique Fells was found alongside Schuylkill River in Bartam’s Garden. This is being treated as a homicide.