Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Lady Gaga calls Donald Trump ‘a fool and a racist’ in emotional George Floyd message

‘He is fuelling a system that is already rooted in racism,’ Gaga said

Adam White
Sunday 31 May 2020 12:27 BST
Comments
Beyoncé feels ‘broken and disgusted’ by George Floyd’s death

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Lady Gaga has called Donald Trump “a fool and a racist” and argued he has offered “nothing but ignorance and prejudice while black lives continue to be taken”.

In an emotional message posted to social media, Gaga expressed her anger over the killing of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man who was pinned to the ground by his neck by a white police officer despite pleading for his life.

“I am as outraged by the death of George Floyd as I have been by the deaths of exponentially too many black lives over hundreds of years that have been taken from us in this country as a result of systemic racism and the corrupt systems that support it,” she wrote.

She continued: “The voices of the black community have been silenced for too long and that silence has proven deadly time and time again. And no matter what they do to protest, they are still met with no compassion by the leaders that are meant to protect them. Everyday people in America are racist, that’s a fact.”

Turning her attention to “racist” Trump, Gaga said he had offered nothing but “ignorance and prejudice while black lives continue to be taken”. She added: “He is fuelling a system that is already rooted in racism, and racist activity, and we can all see what is happening. It’s time for a change.”

“We MUST show our love for the black community,” she continued. “As a white, privileged woman, I take an oath to stand by that. We haven’t, as a privileged community, done enough to fight racism and stand up for those people who are being killed by it. This isn’t justice. This is an epic tragedy that defines our country and has for a long time. I am sad. I am angry. And I will use the words that I can find to try to communicate what needs to change in as an effective and non-violent way as possible for me.”

Gaga released her new album, Chromatica, on Friday (29 May), but postponed a planned live stream listening party due to the ongoing protests against police brutality. She instead encouraged fans to “raise their voices” and register to vote.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in