On February 23rd, Ahmaud Arbery, a black unarmed man, was chased, shot, and killed by two white men in Georgia. The 25-year old was chased and shot with a shotgun by Gregory McMichael and his son, Travis McMichael. However, this incident only recently made it to the national news when a video of the incident was released on 5th May. Moreover, there was a public outcry when they found out that Gregory or Travis McMichael weren’t arrested once for the past two months. When that happened, celebrities joined in as well, demanding justice for Arbery. They include LeBron James, Justin Timberlake, Justin Bieber, etc.
Celebrities speak out for Ahmaud Arbery
As soon as this news made it to national news, celebrities began sending comforting messages to the Arbery family, demanding justice. Justin Bieber said in his Instagram post:
Praying for the family mourning the loss of Ahmaud Arbery. Also praying for justice!
Moreover, Taylor Swift also tweeted in support of Arbery, saying that:
I’m absolutely devastated and horrified by the senseless, cold blooded, racially motivated killing of Ahmaud Arbery. #JusticeForAhmaud
— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) May 7, 2020
Justin Timberlake also extended his support to the Arbery family, demanding more outrage from the public:
If you’re not outraged, you should be. Justice for #AhmaudArbery. pic.twitter.com/VyYaVK4NQY
— Justin Timberlake (@jtimberlake) May 7, 2020
However, the most heartfelt message was from LeBron James, who tweeted a long message filled with outrage over Ahmaud Arbery:
We’re literally hunted EVERYDAY/EVERYTIME we step foot outside the comfort of our homes! Can’t even go for a damn jog man! Like WTF man are you kidding me?!?!?!?!?!? No man fr ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!! I’m sorry Ahmaud(Rest In Paradise) and my prayers and blessings sent to the….. pic.twitter.com/r1PNxs8Vgn
— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 6, 2020
For two months, no one was willing to hear anything from Arbery’s family. This killing only made it to national news after the video surfaced. It makes one wonder about the number of cases that don’t make it to the news.
Moreover, there is a racial bias in the arrest as well as the killing. This is because a similar incident happened in the same state of Georgia a while back. Former Laker Shannon Brown was arrested for shooting at two white men who entered his home, even though no one was injured. But in this incident, Ahmaud Arbery lost his life, and no one bats an eye at it for two months. Sadly, these are just a couple among hundreds of cases where racial bias is this obvious. And as long as they exist in the US, America will never be great.
