On May 29, 30, and 31, protests were held in nearly every major city across America to demonstrate against the death of George Floyd, with the National Guard now activated in at least 15 states. While some protests took a violent turn with lots of looting and arrests, others remained peaceful, with several celebrities choosing to march on the streets in solidarity with others to demand further justice for Floyd’s death. As documented on her Instagram Stories, Ariana Grande joined a Los Angeles protest on Saturday afternoon, where she wore a mask and a sign that read “Black Lives Matter.” Marching in a different Los Angeles protest was Halsey; however, she recorded on social media how police officers were fighting back against the crowds. “Fired rubber bullets at us. We did not breach the line,” the musician wrote. “Hands were up. Unmoving. And they gassed and fired.”
Joining the Saturday protests elsewhere in Los Angeles was model Emily Ratajkowski, who said that the police were “militarized and civilians had no weapons.” She added, “these are not violent protests but they become violent when an actual Army is deployed.” Tinashe and Insecure actor Kendrick Sampson were also present in L.A., with Sampson documenting on Instagram Live how the police hit him with rubber bullets and a baton.
Michael B. Jordan and Kehlani also protested in Los Angeles. “No justice, no peace. Respect existence or expect resistance,” Kehlani wrote.
Outside of California, John Cusack shared a video of Chicago police coming at him “with batons” while he was protesting on his bicycle. Fifth Harmony member Lauren Jauregui also recounted how protests in Miami were “peaceful as fuck” until police “in full gear” and with tear gas arrived. Jamie Foxx and Nick Cannon, meanwhile, were on the front lines in Minneapolis, and Ellen Page documented what was going down in Brooklyn.
Fiona Apple and her bolt cutters (the forearm-tattoo version) marched alongside fellow protesters in Santa Monica, as did Timothée Chalamet.
Halsey returned for a harrowing second day of protesting. “I dont know how to articulate the horrors of today,” she tweeted on Sunday. “NG + officers firing rounds into kneeling crowds. We dont have enough medics on the ground on our side.”
