Justin Bieber called out his own fans on Sunday night for not observing a minute's silence in honour of the victims of the mass shooting in Buffalo, New York.
The popstar's concert took place in Buffalo just hours after 10 people were killed in a neighbouring supermarket in what local police are describing as a racially motivated attack.
As a direct response to the tragedy, Bieber temporarily halted his show for a moment of silence.
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“As you know, there’s been tragedy in the city, but what we’re gonna do tonight, is we’re gonna honour those people, and I would love if we could just take a moment of silence,” he said in a clip he posted to Instagram. “That would mean a lot to me.”
While the majority of his supporters were respectful, several could be heard rudely shouting or screaming during the silence.
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Bieber expressed his dismay in a brief posted message.
“To the people who couldn’t stay silent to honor the lives that were so tragically lost, I urge you to ask yourself why?” he captioned his Instagram post.
The shooting was carried out on Sunday afternoon by an 18-year-old white man, who started firing inside a supermarket.
Of the 13 people who were shot, 11 were Black, leading local police to conclude that it was a racially-motivated incident.
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Bieber went on to mention the shooting several times during the show, clips of which were then uploaded to his personal social media accounts.
“There’s so much division in this world,” Bieber added during his performance.
“So much racial injustice. And as you and I both know, racism is evil and it is diabolical.
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"But what you and I get to do, is we get to be the difference makers.
"We get to be the people who continue to have the conversations with our friends and our families and our loved ones, who continue to be allies.”
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The 28-year-old was similarly vocal in the aftermath of the George Floyd shooting by former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin. He has frequently posted his support for Black Lives Matter, following a summer of global protests against police brutality in 2020.
“Saying black lives matter doesn’t mean that other lives don’t matter,” Bieber previously wrote on Instagram.
“You can’t deny that racism is ingrained in our culture. It is straight up mean to change the subject to something you believe matters equally or more. Why can’t black lives simply just matter. Don’t change the subject.”
If you have experienced a bereavement and would like to speak with someone in confidence contact Cruse Bereavement Care via their national helpline on 0808 808 1677
Topics: Justin Bieber, US News, Music, True crime, Black Lives Matter
Tom Fenton