Music stars like Taylor Swift, Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z are weighing in on the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old who appeared to have been hunted down and shot to death on a residential street in Georgia.
“I’m absolutely devastated and horrified by the senseless, cold blooded, racially motivated killing of Ahmaud Arbery,” Swift tweeted last Thursday.
Timberlake posted a photo of Arbery on Instagram and captioned it: “If you’re not outraged, you should be. Justice for #AhmaudArbery."
Arbery was running down a street on Feb . 23 when he was confronted by two men armed with shotguns who had followed him in a pick-up truck. A scuffle ensued between Arbery and one of the men. Several shots were fired and Arbery, who police said was unarmed, tried to flee but fell to the pavement.
No charges were filed in the case until days after cellphone video went public showing the confrontation and shooting.
Gregory McMichael, a 64-year-old former police officer, and son Travis McMichael, 34, were arrested last week and charged with aggravated assault and murder.
The two men claimed they thought Arbery was a burglary suspect and that shots were fired in self-defence. Surveillance video shows Arbery entering and looking around a partially-constructed house – something he had done previously, including at night – but police said he was not suspected of any crime and his family said he was simply out for a jog.
Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Meek Mill and Yo Gotti called the arrests “a positive step on the long road toward justice” for Arbery, in an open letter to Georgia governor Brian Kemp, attorney general Chris Carr and prosecutor Tom Durden.
"As a society we can no longer pretend that the racial inequities, which exist in every facet of our lives, don't invariably lead down the path to poverty, violence and death,” the letter reads. “To even think about breaking this cycle we need you to protect the process and preserve the fairness of the trial.”
The artists added that Carr should appoint a special prosecutor to avoid potential conflict of interest and to “preserve the rule of law and the pursuit of justice.”
In a statement, Keys said: “If anybody saw that horrifying video of his killing, it is heartbreaking, unbelievably unacceptable and inhumane. No human being should be murdered and not receive justice.”
Megan Thee Stallion shared on Instagram: "This really brought tears to my eyes. I can’t believe people can be this evil it’s disgusting.”
Open letter to Georgia elected officials appearing in the Atlantic Journal-Constitution today, calling for justice to be served in the case of Ahmaud Arbery's murder. Convict his killers and show the world that hate and fear will lose. #JusticeforAhmaud #iRunWithMaud pic.twitter.com/w0nuXthGEc
— Roc Nation (@RocNation) May 10, 2020