Celebrities join US protests

Model Emily Ratajkowski was spotted at the protests. (Instagram)

DUBAI: Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets all across the US in the past few days to protest the killings of African-American citizens George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others at the hands of police. Among the protesters was a handful of celebrities. 

Franco-Algerian actress Sofia Boutella joined the demonstrations in Los Angeles on Saturday, which she documented by way of her Instagram Stories.

Model Emily Ratajkowski wrote to her 26.4 million Instagram followers: “DISMANTLE POWER STRUCTURES OF OPPRESSION,” alongside a series of images from the protests, which took place in Downtown Los Angeles.

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DISMANTLE POWER STRUCTURES OF OPPRESSION #defundthepolice #justiceforgeorgefloyd #blacklivesmatter

A post shared by Emily Ratajkowski (@emrata) on May 30, 2020 at 3:19pm PDT

25-year-old pop star Halsey also showed solidarity with the protesters at the Los Angeles demonstrations.  In the evening, Halsey took to Twitter to shut down rumors that she had been arrested during the protests. “I WAS NOT ARRESTED. Im safe,” she wrote.

“Black Panther” star Michael B. Jordan and singer Tinashe were also at the Los Angeles protests.

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Show up.

A post shared by Nashe if ur Nasty (@tinashenow) on May 29, 2020 at 9:07pm PDT

Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad also joined in on the protests. “Last night, I followed my conscience. I joined the peaceful protests of my city in Downtown Los Angeles. It was a powerful moment for us— a moment to express ourselves in response to the senseless killing of our brother George Floyd,” she wrote on Instagram.

Muhammad went on to reveal that she was arrested by the LAPD during the protesting, and was held for several hours. “We chanted and peacefully walked the streets for hours. There was a group of guys who calmed down any of the protestors who reached their breaking point. As we made our way to City Hall, the police barricaded the surrounding blocks, unbeknownst to me. As LAPD choppers circled the sky, the barricade of police in riot gear began to close in. Along with hundreds of other protestors, I was held for hours.”

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Last night, I followed my conscience. I joined the peaceful protests of my city in Downtown Los Angeles. It was a powerful moment for us— a moment to express ourselves in response to the senseless killing of our brother George Floyd. We chanted and peacefully walked the streets for hours. There was a group of guys who calmed down any of the protestors who reached their breaking point. As we made our way to City Hall, the police barricaded the surrounding blocks, unbeknownst to me. As LAPD choppers circled the sky, the barricade of police in riot gear began to close in. Along with hundreds of other protestors, I was held for hours. We sat and listened to the reports of a different group of people downtown destroying property, as one by one they began to arrest each of us. We were zip tied, sat on curbs, put in cages on a bus (yes those prison buses you only see in movies), and taken to the nearest precinct. I can’t began to express the wave of fear I felt when I realized I would be taken into custody and heard the words, “sit down and you will be arrested peacefully." But what I can tell you is that the fear I felt in that moment didn’t come close to the fear George Floyd felt on that horrific day his life was taken from us We all have a role to play. Don’t think you can’t be a part of that change. IF NOT NOW, WHEN? #JusticeforGeorgeFloyd . . . “O you who believe, stand firm for justice even against your own selves” (Surah An-Nisa 4:135)

A post shared by Ibtihaj Muhammad (@ibtihajmuhammad) on May 30, 2020 at 11:15am PDT

In Fayetteville, North Carolina, US rapper J.Cole was among the attendees of a George Floyd protest in his hometown on Saturday.

Other celebrities spotted protesting include actors Jamie Foxx, Nick Cannon, Keanu Reeves and Kendrick Sampson.