Last week, after the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, actor Nick Cannon took to the streets of New York City to join protesters calling for justice and answers. And on Monday, Cannon released a powerful spoken-word poem that solidified his stance when it comes to the movement.
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Simply titled, "Black Lives Matter," the poem's video includes footage from the New York City protests, as well as clips of various police officers.
When I say Black Lives matterThat don't mean yours don'tWhen we say Black lives matterThat don't mean your kids won'tThey will… They gonna say it with us, because they get us.When I say Black lives matter that don't mean yours don'tWhen I say Black lives matterDon't mean white folks can't get on the boatSo it's like when I say save the whalesThat don't mean the other fish can't floatIt just means that the whales are endangeredJust like my speciesdiscreetlyIt don't matter who's doing the killingAs long as we end up extinct, seeThis Is the thesis in these secret meetingsThey having about me and the rest of my communityThey say well when they shooting each otherThey don't care about unityWell brutally Let me be the one to say, they right!TruthfullyBut there ain't no such thing as black on black violenceIt's crime against you and me!Intolerance of peopleHumanitySee Gentrification and GenocideIt's the Same thing in my eyesSo we gotta reprogram these social liesAnd take back our streetsAnd we gonna keep screaming, fighting, marching and cussingUntil we abolish injusticeAnd our internal royalty is realized and reachedThat's why I'm out here nowPracticing what I preachSo all you tweeting at me with all that Social chatterWhen they kill meMake sure they put on my tombstoneDamn RightBlack Lives Matter
In an interview with Pret-a-Reporter, Cannon gave his reasons for writing the poem.
"I said a lot of things like, 'I'll stop making it about race when they stop making it about race.' People were like, 'We're tired of you guys saying Black Lives Matter.' I'm tired of having to say it," he said. "I don't want to sit back and debate statistics and how many people are killed. Killing is just wrong in general. Life is a life. This nation is hurt. It's broken and we've got to fix it. It takes all of us to do it."
Take a look at the video below:
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