Ellen DeGeneres Shares Black Lives Matter Message After Twitter Backlash

Ellen DeGeneres is speaking out on Black Lives Matter after her tweet on the topic sparked backlash earlier this week. In a new video posted on Instagram June 1, the talkshow host added to her initial response to the death of George Floyd, expanding on thoughts she had shared last week, the Huffington Post reports.

DeGeneres began her video with a heavy sigh, and admitted that she hadn’t “spoke directly because I don’t know what to say.” Although she captioned her post with #BlackLivesMatter, she did not mention Floyd, Derek Chauvin, the police or Black Lives Matter by name in her video.

She did seem to allude to Floyd’s death at one point in her message, saying “People have gotten away with murder.” “That’s what is happening,” she added. “So we’ve gotta see fairness and we’ve gotta see justice for all, because right now, this is not a fair world. Not at all.”

Earlier in her recording, DeGeneres explained that she felt a responsibility to speak up for inequality. “I have always wanted to be the voice for people who feel like they don’t have a voice, because I know what that feels like,” she said. “I’m just so sorry that it’s come to this. I really don’t know what to say other than this has gone on way, way, way, way too long.”

“We have a long way to go to even get close to being fair,” DeGeneres continued. “If you don’t understand this, then you have never felt like you weren’t heard or you weren’t equal. But if you’ve ever felt that, magnify it and see what’s happening.”

Her video comes after DeGeneres was ripped online for her initial response to Floyd’s death. Her May 30 post has been deleted after commenters accused her of being tone deaf.

“Like so many of you, I am angry and I am sad,” DeGeneres wrote, according to Insider. “People of color in this country have faced injustice for far too long. For things to change, things must change. We must commit ourselves to this change with conviction and love.”

The replies were swift and critical, with one user tweeting, “This statement is meaningless and a back door to All Lives Matter. For things to change, we must first acknowledge specifically that #BlackLivesMatter.”

“Not people of color. George Floyd was black. Why are being so cautious? Serious ?” another added.

DeGeneres posted a new tweet the next day (May 31) with a more direct message. “I support the protestors who are exercising their rights and standing up against the horrible injustices that Black people in America face everyday. #BlackLivesMatter,” she wrote. DeGeneres also added that she would be donating to the George Floyd Memorial Fund, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Black Lives Matter and the American Civil Liberties Union.

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