Justice Smith
has come out as queer with an eloquent and passionate call for people
supporting Black Lives Matter to be inclusive of queer and trans Black lives,
as well.
The Jurassic
Park and Detective Pikachu actor shared a video from
a recent protest he attended in New Orleans along with his boyfriend, actor
Nicholas Ashe. It was the first time the two had publicly acknowledged their
relationship, and the first time Smith acknowledged being a member of the
LGBTQ+ community.
Smith’s
decision to come out to the public seems to have been inspired by the refusal
of some people at the protest to chant along during declarations that trans and
queer Black lives matter, something he said disappointed him as a Black queer
man.
"I want
to reiterate this sentiment: if your revolution does not include Black Queer
voices, it is anti-Black," he 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. It is in our conditioning to get as close to
whiteness, straightness, maleness as we can because that’s where the power is.
And if we appeal to it, maybe it’ll give us a slice."
Smith went on
to say that the revolution requires demanding the equality that Black, queer,
and trans individuals have always deserved, rather than simply appealing to
those who have profited off an unequal system in hopes that they’ll share.
He also gave a
shout out to Ashe, who he called his "rock and guiding light through all
of this."
SOURCE: PRIDE DOT COM
How brave. And how right! They make a cute couple, too.
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