John Boyega Receives Huge Support From Filmmakers For His Black Lives Matter Speech
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John Boyega has been flooded with support after saying he wasn’t sure if he’d have a career after speaking out at a Black Lives Matter demonstration.
The actor, famed for his role as Finn in the Star Wars series, made an emotional and powerful speech at the Hyde Park demonstration yesterday, June 3.
‘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*ck that,’ he told crowds, while shouting his support for George Floyd, Sandra Bland, Trayvon Martin and Stephen Lawrence.
Check it out here:
Boyega broke down in tears when he spoke of the pain caused by systemic racism in his incredibly moving speech.
Although the 28-year-old expressed concerns his career hopes may have been dashed by him speaking out, a number of high-profile filmmakers, producers and co-stars have come forward to show their support for the actor.
Fellow Star Wars star Mark Hamill, who plays Luke Skywalker, said he’d ‘never been prouder’ of Boyega, while Get Out director Jordan Peele suggested he’d like to work with him, adding, ‘We got you, John.’
Black Mirror producer Charlie Brooker even went so far as to say he would ‘crawl through a barrel of broken glass to have John Boyega even so much as *glance* at one of [his] scripts’.
Meanwhile, film director Matthew A. Cherry, who created independent films 9 Rides and The Last Fall, said:
I would work with John Boyega and I urge other Non-Black creators to affirm that they have his back as well.
During his emotional speech, Boyega said:
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.
Black lives have always mattered. We have always been important. We have always meant something. We have always succeeded regardless. And now is the time. I ain’t waiting.
Boyega finished his speech by encouraging crowds to continue to be ‘as peaceful as possible,’ saying: ‘They want you to mess up, they want us to be disorganised – but not today.’
He was one of thousands of protesters who turned up at Hyde Park yesterday to demonstrate their outrage over the killing of George Floyd, a black father who died in police custody.
Floyd’s death has sparked global outrage at the racial injustices faced by black and ethnic minority citizens, not only in the US, but here in the UK and across the world.
If you want to do your bit to support the movement, you can begin by signing the Black Lives Matter petition above.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact Stop Hate UK by visiting their website www.stophateuk.org/talk
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