John Boyega offered a rousing, rallying call to protesters gathered in London on Wednesday. Speaking into a megaphone, the British-Nigerian actor, known for his portrayal of Finn in the Star Wars franchise, demanded justice before emotionally honouring George Floyd and other victims of police brutality.
"Now is the time. I ain't waiting."
"Black lives have always mattered. We have always been important. We have always meant something. We have always succeeded regardless," he told the thousands gathered [1] at Hyde Park. "And now is the time. I ain't waiting. . . . Every Black person understands and realises the first time you are reminded that you are Black." He then addressed those opposing the protest: "I need you guys to understand. I need you to understand how painful this sh*t is. I need you to understand how painful it is to be reminded every day that your race means nothing." At this point, John was crying as a fellow protester placed a comforting hand on his back.
In another moment, John added: "We're going to try today. We are a physical representation of our support for George Floyd. We are a physical representation on our support for Sandra Bland. We are a physical representation on our support for Trayvon Martin. We are a physical representation of our support for Stephen Lawrence. For Mark Duggan."
If you want to join London's Black Lives Matter protests [3] this week, here are the details.