Country artists are speaking out after the death of George Floyd, a Minneapolis man who died after a police officer knelt on his neck on May 25th.
The tragic incidient has created much talk online with some country artists.

 

 

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As the father of a black daughter and also two white daughters- I have struggled with what to say today. We have navigated forms of racism directly and while there is mostly overwhelming support and love for our family, sometimes there is just the opposite. Because of that fear, it can be a lot easier to choose silence, but today I’m choosing to speak. I have no clue what it feels like to be profiled by authorities, treated negatively or have my life threatened because of the color of my skin. When I witnessed the horrific murder of George and think about the mistreatment of other black men and women in America, I am heartbroken and angry. I get scared when I think about my daughters and what kind of world they will be growing up in and how my JOB as a father is to show them how to lead with love in the face of hate. To know their worth and value as not only women but human beings. I have witnessed my black band and crew members on the road struggle at times with feeling safe because of the color of their skin. This is unacceptable. I don’t believe in hate. I believe in love. What happened to George was pure hate. We are all created by the same God. I pray for a change in heart of those hearts who have been overcome by hatred and hardened. I pray for a deeper understanding for myself and awareness of the experience of mistreatment that those of another skin color go through. I pray for the families of those who have lost their lives to violence or experienced trauma at the hand of racial oppression and injustice. What can we do? I ask myself this question everyday. We each have to be part of the solution and we have to continue to educate ourselves, continue to support both financially and with service those organizations doing good work in our communities to overcome injustice and hatred in our country. And if you’re like me, continue to pray. So if there is any question on where I stand let me be clear- I stand with you, I stand with George and his family and all those who have faced racism. I stand with my wife and my daughters. We will be fighting this fight for the rest of our lives. Rest In Peace, George. We are not letting this go.

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I have been nervous to post anything in the past and even now because of how some people believe that I as a white mother am undeserving or incapable of raising a black daughter. I believe that shaming comes from people who choose to see only my white skin and her brown skin and refuse to see our hearts and love for each other. That shaming has created such anxiety in me that I am afraid to share my heart on social media. But as her mother, I want her to be VERY sure that I am HER mother who stands up not only for her, but for every single person who shares her beautiful brown skin. I want to be her mother who raises her to know what it means to have brown skin and to be proud of it. I want to be her mother who doesn’t listen to the shaming of skin colors but instead listens to the Spirit of God who knitted every skin color together in their mother’s womb for His glory. Because the truth is: I AM HER mother who FIGHTS for her. I am her mother who celebrates not only WHO she and her two sisters are, but WHOSE they are and exactly who God created them to be. It’s hard for me to sort out what it is I want to say to her, and what it is I want to say to the rest of the world. I do think there are parts of my heart that can be shared with the world publicly, but then there are parts of my heart that should be kept here at home just for her and all of my children. However, I do believe I’m being disobedient to God if I don’t speak up against injustice and fight for change. I believe if I stay silent I am betraying my brothers and sisters. I believe if I stay silent I am betraying my daughter. I believe if I stay silent I am betraying the heart of God. Don’t stay silent. Fight. Use the most powerful weapon of all: love. Look to the One who created that weapon and follow His lead. Together, let’s be an army for love. That means speaking up loudly for injustices whether or not we share the same skin color, language, beliefs…the list goes on. I want my children to cling to the good. Love, peace, kindness, joy. I want them to BE the good. Injustice is evil. It breaks the heart of God. I pray He breaks every one of our hearts over this injustice until He returns.

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an update from our hearts…

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PART I My heart has been hurting for a weeks now and as I’ve been processing all that’s going on in our country, it’s hard for me to find the words to say. Although the perfect words may not flow out I refuse to be silent. I hope you all can hear my heart. I feel guilty for being naive enough to think that racism, and hatred, due to skin color is a thing of the past. Racism is real in 2020, but doesn’t have to be our future. We, especially the white community, have the opportunity and the obligation to create real change in history. I hope and pray that we can lean on love, grace, forgiveness, compassion, and empathy moving forward. This isn’t and shouldn’t be about a political, religious, or cultural agenda. This is about humanity. This HUMAN race. “ALL lives matter,” and it’s time that we let our actions speak louder than our words. To the families and friends of the ones we’ve lost, I’m so sorry. I know words won’t fix or bring back your loved ones, but please know that you all are on my heart and in my prayers every day and have been for weeks. I will continue to pray for healing, comfort, and peace that I know first hand only God can give, through this unimaginable time. Also know, we will stand with you and fight for justice. Your loss with not be in vain. To the police officers. I know most of y’all are good people with good intentions to protect and serve, and for that I say thank you. Thanks for being willing to put your life at risk every day. We appreciate all you do and are extremely grateful. We are also sorry that there are some cops out there with different agendas, with hate in their hearts, that ruin and taint the reputation of anybody with a uniform on. We support the good ones and know you guys are fighting a tough battle right now. Just know that y’all are making a difference for the better and showing the world that if people can be taught to hate than people can also learn to love.

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#BlackLivesMatter

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Some thoughts from @mtramsey – Just a few short months ago, I watched as beauty arose from tragedy. The nashville community came together to lift up their neighbors that took a direct hit from a powerful unexpected storm. Where there was pain, kindness bloomed. I’m no meteorologist, but I think a tornado is created by cold, dry air and warm, humid air colliding. We are now in the midst of a much more powerful and destructive storm. As I watch it sweep across America, taking innocent lives and destroying neighborhoods, I am reminded that I am no expert in this type of storm either. The turbulent hand of racism has not touched me. Therefore, like many of the people I talk to, I’m left feeling helpless, scared, guilty and ashamed. There is no basement we can crawl into to protect ourselves from this storm. We can only listen to it and learn from it as it tears a path through our lives. I have faith that kindness can bloom again. I’ve seen it happen. I know we as people can find love and compassion for our neighbors who have been hurt. In these painful times, please focus your hearts on healing, compassion, communication, humanity, humility and love. Hate has had its day. It’s on us to work together now to clean it up.

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Filed under: dan-shay, darius-rucker, jojo-mason, kane-brown, kip-moore, lauren-akins, thomas-rhett