Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra made their most explicit statement yet against systemic racism while announcing donations on Wednesday.
Nick, 27, announced the donations on his Twitter feed while stating that ‘bigotry and exclusion’ had gone on for too long.
The couple’s donations were announced as protestors across the United States took to the streets for the ninth day in a row following the death of George Floyd in police custody last week.
Funding a movement: Nick Jonas, 27, announced Wednesday on Twitter that he and his wife Priyanka Chopra, 37, had made donations to help battle ‘systemic racism’ and ‘bigotry’; pictured in January
Nick signed the tweets from himself and Priyanka, 37, as the two vowed not to be silent about hatred.
‘Pri & I have heavy hearts … The reality of the inequalities in this country, and around the world, are glaring,’ he wrote.
‘Systemic racism, bigotry and exclusion has gone on for far too long, and remaining silent not only reinforces it, but it allows it to continue.’
In a follow-up tweet, he wrote, ‘The time to take action is NOW. It’s no longer enough to say “I’m not racist”. We must all do the work to be ANTI racist and stand with the black community.
‘In our first step towards our continued efforts to help fight this fight, Pri and I have donated to the @eji_org [Equal Justice Initiative] & @ACLU [American Civil Liberties Union],’ he wrote.
Monetary help: Nick signed the tweets from himself and Priyanka, 37, as the two vowed not to be silent about hatred. He said they had donated to the Equal Justice Initiative and the ACLU
Nick finished off his tweet threat by adding, ‘We stand with you and we love you,’ along with the hashtags ‘#BlackLivesMatter’ and ‘JusticeForGeorgeFloyd.’
Despite mentioning the donations, he didn’t reveal how much they had donated.
Other celebrities have been posting screenshots of their donation receipts to social media in recent days.
According to its website, the Equal Justice Initiative is ‘committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment in the United States, to challenging racial and economic injustice, and to protecting basic human rights for the most vulnerable people in American society.’
On Wednesday, the ACLU of Minnesota filed a class action lawsuit against local and state law enforcement officials amid reports of journalists being targeted by police officers while covering protests in Minneapolis.
Making their feelings known: Nick and Priyanka had previously posted on social media in support of protestors; shown in January
Serving justice: The Jonas Brothers star had previously called for Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison to take over the investigation into Floyd’s killing and to charge all four police officers involved on Twitter
Major cities throughout the US have seen massive protests inspired by the death of George Floyd on May 25.
He was killed when a white police officer pressed his knee into his neck for nearly nine minutes, including almost three minutes after he stopped breathing and became unresponsive.
On Wednesday, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison upgraded charges against officer Derek Chauvin from third-degree murder to second-degree murder, while retaining a second-degree manslaughter charged.
He also announced charges against the other three officers at the scene for aiding and abetting murder and manslaughter.
All four were fired from the Minneapolis Police Department shortly after the disturbing video of Floyd’s death went public.
Calling for change: On Tuesday, he called for ‘real leadership that unites’ amid reports that tear gas had been used to clear out demonstrators in front of a church so that President Donald Trump could have a photo op
Moving display: On Sunday, he shared a video of police officers marching behind a banner with protestors, calling it ‘so powerful,’ though some protestors have lambasted the idea of involving law enforcement
Nick had previously called for Ellison to take over the court cases and to charge all four men on Twitter.
On Sunday, he shared a video of police officers marching behind a banner with protestors, calling it ‘so powerful.’
However, some protestors have called for an end to attempts to march with police and national guard members for fear that those feel-good videos may overshadow videos of police brutality against protestors and journalists.