Celebrities Voice Dismay Over Ferguson Grand Jury Verdict

As the disbelief and anger set in over the grand jury verdict to not indict police officer Darren Wilson over the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, celebrities took to social media to express their solidarity with the family of the unarmed black teenager.

Hip hop artists Rihanna, Pharrell Williams, Missy Elliot and Young Jeezy all posted messages of condolence, while comedian and actor Chris Rock expressed his disappointment with U.S. justice with his quote from W.E.B. Dubois, “A system cannot fail those it was never meant to protect.”

Tennis champion Serena Williams took to Twitter to call the grand jury decision “shameful,” and legendary basketball player Le Bron James posted an illustration to Instagram of Brown walking arm in arm with another murdered black teenager, Trayvon Martin.

Producer Moby was shocked that no one would be accountable for Brown’s death.   

Author and editor of The Atlantic magazine, Ta-Nehisi Coates, who has been vocal on the case since it erupted in August, echoed the words of author and academic William Jelani Cobb with his statement that Brown's "death was punctuation to a long, profane sentence, which has insulted a great many, and with damning frequency of late,” he wrote.

Other celebrities to add their voices to the outcry were actress and writer Lena Dunham, civil rights activist Al Sharpton and comedian Cedric the Entertainer.

" A system cannot fail those it was never meant to protect " W.E.B. DuBois. http://t.co/1OCKbrJaTb

— Chris Rock (@chrisrock) November 25, 2014

Wow. Just wow. Shameful. What will it take???

— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) November 25, 2014

 

facts.

Une photo publiée par badgalriri (@badgalriri) le Nov. 11, 2014 at 6:55 PST

Brown's "death was punctuation to a long, profane sentence, which has insulted a great many, and with damning frequency of late." @jelani9

— Ta-Nehisi Coates (@tanehisicoates) November 25, 2014

All my love is with the family of Michael Brown. I applaud their strength and courage, mourn their loss, pray they see justice and change.

— Lena Dunham (@lenadunham) November 25, 2014

I'm heartbroken over the news of no indictment in Ferguson. Let's all pray for peace.

— Pharrell Williams (@Pharrell) November 25, 2014

 

As a society how do we do better and stop things like this happening time after time!! I'm so sorry to these families. Violence is not the answer people. Retaliation isn't the solution as well. #PrayersUpToTheFamilies #WeHaveToDoBetter

A photo posted by LeBron James (@kingjames) on Nov 11, 2014 at 7:06pm PST

My Heart is still heavy after last night... But I come from a Praying family! & the Power of Prayer�� #Ferguson

— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) November 25, 2014

Black Lives Matter. #RIPMikeBrown pic.twitter.com/JwXQXDATDs

— SnowGo (@YoungJeezy) November 25, 2014

 

I am speaking at the House of Justice now after the decision has been made that officer Darren Wilson was not indicted in the #MikeBrown case.

A photo posted by @real_sharpton on Nov 11, 2014 at 6:59pm PST

#FergusonVerdict Prayers to #MikeBrownsfamily and my city. Unwarranted violence will help not help this situation. The Family wants peace.

— CedricTheEntertainer (@CedEntertainer) November 25, 2014

So a cop gets out of his cruiser, chases an unarmed teen, shoots him 6 times. Tell me again how that is responsible policing?

— moby Ⓥ (@thelittleidiot) November 26, 2014