Starwars Actor, John Boyega on Wednesday during demonstration at Hyde Park in London, rallied behind African-Americans protesting the death of George Floyd in the United States.
Last week Floyd, 46, died in Police custody after a police officer was seen kneeling on his neck. Following his death, protests erupted around the world, with many marching in support of Black Lives Matter.
On Wednesday, many Britons defied lockdown restrictions to converge at Hyde Park, where Star Wars actor Boyega referenced two other black Americans who controversially died in the US, as well as the racist UK murder of Stephen Lawrence.
He told demonstrators: ‘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.’
Boyega, 28, added: ‘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.
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.’
The actor added it was important to ‘keep control of this moment’ and make it as ‘peaceful and as organised as possible’: ‘Because they want us to mess up, they want us to be disorganised but not today.’
Protesters were initially asked to sit two metres apart unless they were in the same household and were told to keep their arms stretched out to ensure social distancing when moving around the park.
