Christina Aguilera shares thought-provoking message about racism

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ABC/Image Group LATo further support the Black Lives Matter movement, Christina Aguilera has been sharing her platform with the black community in the wake of George Floyd‘s death.  On Wednesday, the “Beautiful” singer shared a thought-provoking letter from a black activist to further educate her followers about racism.

“Imagine. I urge you to use this time to take action, educate yourself, listen, amplify black voices, protest in the street and protest at home by having hard conversations with those you love,” Aguilera expressed, vowing to continue using her platform to help fans stay informed.

The 39-year-old shared the bold words from aspiring director JD Dillard, who described the building fury within the black community.

“Imagine there was a virus spreading and you were the most likely to be infected and killed by it.  That’s because the job you have, if you hadn’t lost it by now, puts you most at risk of contracting it,” The unapologetic letter begins, painting the anxiety and stress countless African Americans had been experiencing months before Floyd.

Dillard depicts how black Americans felt upon watching the cellphone footage of a white Minnesota police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck.  “This rage – this helplessness – this sadness is so overwhelming, but still — you take to the streets, hoping to be heard,” the message persists.  “In spite of the danger from both the police and the epidemic, you step outside to remind the world that right now, you are still alive.”

Dillard touches upon the discourse of critics calling for peaceful protesting by evoking Martin Luther King Jr. in which he bluntly explained, “Strange thing is — they killed that man, too.” 

The message ends with an eye-opening, “To be Black in America is to be oscillating between sadness, and this pride.  Imagine that.”

By Megan Stone
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