Country star Chris Stapleton says Black lives ABSOLUTELY matter: ‘Thought we were living in a different country’
Country singer Chris Stapleton has expressed his views on the recent Black Lives Matter protests that started after the death of George Floyd in police custody. On ‘CBS This Morning’, the 42-year-old told host Anthony Mason, “There's a very broad awakening that's come about. It's time for me to listen. It's time for other folks to listen."
Stapleton continued: “You know, I thought we were living in a different country. And that's 100% real. The country that I thought we were living in was a myth." When Mason asked the ‘Tennessee Whiskey’ singer if he supports the Black Lives Matter movement, Stapleton responded without any hesitation, “Do I think Black lives matter? Absolutely. I don't know how you can think they don't." He added: “I think we all have a lot of work to do, you know, as individuals, as a society. And if you don’t think that, I think you’re not looking.”
During the chat, Stapleton also shared that a song titled 'Watch You Burn' on his forthcoming album describes his take on another sad moment in the US — a mass shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas in 2017 that took the lives of 59 people. The powerful track ‘Watch You Burn,’ which the singer described “therapeutic,” features lyrics like: "Only a coward would pick up a gun to shoot up a crowd trying to have fun.” “It's a powerful number to me that conveys the sentiment, hey let's cut the evil sh** out… it's a plea in some ways," he said of the song.
Following Floyd's death on May 25, former Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin and three other officers were charged. The 46-year-old’s killing sparked wide-spread Black Lives Matter protests across the nation with people demanding an end to racial injustice. But instead of any positive change, things took a wild turn after another Black man Jacob Blake was shot at least seven times in the back in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The 29-year-old was shot on August 23 before his three children as police responded to the 2800 Block of 40th Street after receiving a complaint of “family trouble”.
While Blake has survived, he is now paralyzed as he receives treatment at Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee. His father, Jacob Blake Sr, recently shared an update on his health as he said that he is “holding on for dear life.” “We are dealing with an individual that a couple of months, a couple of weeks ago was running around with the boys and talking to me on the phone and laughing to an individual that cannot move his leg,” he added.
Earlier, on August 25, Blake’s lawyer, Ben Crump said at a press conference: “His family believes in miracles, but the medical diagnosis right now is that he is paralyzed and, because those bullets severed his spinal cord and shattered some of his vertebrae, it is going to take a miracle for Jacob Blake Jr to ever walk again.”