Rihanna marches at New York City protest against anti-Asian hate
Rihanna protested on Sunday at a New York City march against anti-Asian violence and hate crimes.
The musician’s assistant, Tina Truong, posted an Instagram story on Monday of Rihanna making a green sign that read “hate = racism against god,” alongside videos from the protest.
In another video, the Fenty Beauty founder can be seen marching while holding a pink sign that says “Stop Asian Hate.”
Rihanna joins the #StopAsianHate protest in NYC ❤️ || teacuptina pic.twitter.com/SVqN5V27b7
— BET (@BET) April 5, 2021
Demonstrators can be also be seen holding signs that say “Everybody vs Racism” and heard chanting “this is what community looks like” in the photos and videos posted by Troung.
The “Umbrella” singer is not the first celebrity to attend a demonstration in recent weeks protesting violence against Asian Americans, which has risen sharply amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Actress Sandra Oh last month attended a rally in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood, where she led demonstrators in chants of “I am proud to be Asian” and “I belong here.”
Protests have broken out across the country against the rise in anti-Asian discrimination.
The nonprofit Stop AAPI Hate said last month that it received nearly 3,800 reports of hate incidents against Asian Americans in the last year.
A study from California State University’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism showed that hate crimes against Asian Americans in 16 of the country’s largest cities spiked nearly 150 percent in 2020 amid the pandemic.
A gunman last month killed eight people, including six Asian women, in a spree shooting at several Atlanta-area massage parlors.
Officials have not charged the shooter with a hate crime or publicly confirmed that the shooting was motivated by race.
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