Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdomactor Justice Smith came out as queer on Friday night on Instagram as he showed support for the Black Lives Matter movement and called for Queer and Trans inclusion.
The post was a video of the protest that Smith attended in New Orleans attached was a long caption in which he said, “As a black queer man myself, I was disappointed to see certain people eager to say Black Lives Matter, but hold their tongue when Trans/Queer was added. I want to reiterate this sentiment: if your revolution does not include Black Queer voices, it is anti-black.”
He went on to discuss the death of Tony McDade, a black transgender man who was shot and killed by a Tallahassee Police Department officer on May 27. Smith said, “If your revolution is okay with letting black trans people like #TonyMcDade slip through the cracks in order to solely liberate black cishet men, it is anti-black. You are trying to push yourself through the door of a system designed against you, and then shut the door behind you.”
Smith was accompanied at the New Orleans protests by his partner Nicholas Ashe, an actor from Queen Sugar. Smith addressed Ashe in his post by stating, “You’ve been my rock and guiding light through all of this and I love you so much. I know that on the other side of this Is change, though the fight is far from over.”
Smith has been active on social media with his support of the Black Lives Matter movement. On May 27 Smith posted a video about black mental health on Instagram. He said, “this wasn’t about #georgefloyd but i think the same institution that criminalizes black mental illness criminalizes blackness altogether. it emboldens people to call the police on us and feel justified. it keeps us voiceless and small, with a thin margin of error, so if mistakes ARE made, it warrants death.”
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this wasn’t about #georgefloyd but i think the same institution that criminalizes black mental illness criminalizes blackness altogether. it emboldens people to call the police on us and feel justified. it keeps us voiceless and small, with a thin margin of error, so if mistakes ARE made, it warrants death. it takes our little brothers, our sisters, our fathers, our mothers relentlessly avoiding consequence, and demonizing anyone who speaks out against it. if you are feeling hopeless right now, just know as a community we are stronger than ever. we are more powerful than ever. we are more vocal than ever. although we will never be allowed to stop fighting, we will hold our predators accountable and we will demand change as we’ve done time and time again. and to those black and brown people who are dealing with your own personal battle on top of all this tragedy, you are valued. you matter. you are loved. you do not have to accept the things our society tries to get you to internalize about yourself. your voice matters. your feelings matter. your life matters. sometimes the most radical thing is to live and love your life to the fullest in the face of people who tell you you’re unworthy. take care of yourself. build your strength from within and i promise nothing will shake you.
A post shared by Justice Smith (@standup4justice) on May 27, 2020 at 8:12pm PDT
Protests have been occurring in major United States cities as a response to the death of George Floyd, a black man who was killed in police custody by an officer kneeling on his neck.
