Justice Smith Comes Out as Queer, Criticizes Queer and Trans Exclusion From BLM Protests
In an Instagram post showing his participation in a demonstration, the ‘Pokemon: Detective Pikachu’ star demands ‘the right to exist … to live and prosper in public’ for ‘ black, queer, and trans individuals.’
- Jun 8, 2020
AceShowbiz –
Justice Smith has come out as queer while voicing his support for black queer and transgender amid the Black Lives Matter movement. Demanding equal support for the black LGBTQ+ community, the actor shared a video of him joining a protest while criticizing the exclusion of queer and trans from the “Black Lives Matter” chants.
“@nckash and I protested today in New Orleans,” the 24-year-old wrote in the caption of the Instagram post. “We chanted ‘Black Trans Lives Matter’ ‘Black Queer Lives Matter’ ‘All Black Lives Matter’.” He then revealed his sexuality as adding, “As a black queer man myself, I was disappointed to see certain people eager to say Black Lives Matter, but hold their tongue when Trans/Queer was added.”
“I want to reiterate this sentiment: if your revolution does not include Black Queer voices, it is anti-black. If your revolution is okay with letting black trans people like #TonyMcDade slip through the cracks in order to solely liberate black cishet men, it is anti-black,” he argued.
The “Pokemon Detective Pikachu” star went on explaining, “You are trying to push yourself through the door of a system designed against you, and then shut the door behind you. It is in our conditioning to get as close to whiteness, straightness, maleness as we can because that’s where the power is. And if we appeal to it, maybe it’ll give us a slice.”
“But the revolution is not about appeal,” he stressed, before defending the rights of black queer and trans people, “It is about demanding what should have been given to us from the beginning. What should have been given to black, queer, and trans individuals from the beginning. Which is the right to exist. To live and prosper in public. Without fear of persecution or threat of violence.”
Justice also showed his love for his boyfriend Nicholas Ashe, who stars on Ava DuVernay’s drama “Queen Sugar“. He shared photos of them brushing their teeth together, and kissing in a photo booth. “There is so much tragedy on the timeline these last couple of days so I added some photos of me and Nic to show some #blackboyjoy #blacklove #blackqueerlove,” he added in his sweet tribute.”You’ve been my rock and guiding light through all of this and I love you so much. I know that on the other side of this Is change, though the fight is far from over.”
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