*The multiple Prince tributes and Beyonce’s aquatic surprise were among the many buzzworthy moments from Sunday’s BET Awards, but who knew an acceptance speech from “Grey’s Anatomy” star and Humanitarian Award recipient Jesse Williams would not only win the night, but possibly spark a new round of black activism.
Not long after his six minute speech had the audience at LA’s Microsoft Theater on their feet cheering, the hashtags #activistbae and #wokebae began trending on Twitter.
Jesse Williams ? #activistbae #wokebae
— C. Lanese (@MBAGirl08) June 27, 2016
“We’re done watching and waiting while this invention called whiteness uses and abuses us, burying black people out of sight and out of mind while extracting our culture, our dollars, our entertainment like oil, black gold; ghettoizing and demeaning our creations then stealing them; gentrifying our genius and trying us on like costumes before discarding our bodies,” he said onstage.
In addition to cultural appropriation, Williams’ speech also touched on police brutality (“police somehow manage to deescalate, disarm and not kill white people everyday”), and targeted those who complain about the disruptive tactics of Black Lives Matter.
“The burden of the brutalized is not to comfort the bystander. That’s not our job, alright? Stop with all that,” he said. “If you have a critique for the resistance, then you better have an established record of critique of our oppression.”
He gave a massive shoutout to black women, “who have spent their lifetimes dedicated to nurturing everyone before themselves. We can and will do better for you.”
Williams also spoke out about the culture’s emphasis on materialism, eloquently using the term “brands on our bodies” to reference both slavery and designer clothing.
Williams has been “woke” for many years. Aside from sharing his vision of black America via Twitter, he’s written articles about race for CNN and The Huffington Post; he’s the youngest member of the board of directors at The Advancement Project, a civil rights think tank and advocacy group; and he executive produced and starred in the documentary “Stay Woke: Black Lives Matter,” which aired on BET in May.
His speech hit such a chord last night that folks are ready to anoint him as our new spokesperson:
*cue the organ after Activist bae sermon on the mount* pic.twitter.com/cB1nVWmBMZ
— Yo Teach! (@mydear_watson) June 27, 2016
@WrecklessLove We absolutely have to keep Activist Bae safe. He inspired me to do real, meaningful things last night.
— Noelle Harmony (@noelleharmony) June 27, 2016
Good to see the rest of the world is catching on to #ActivistBae Jesse Williams. This man has ALWAYS been this woke
— Shakiti (@ItsMissIsi) June 27, 2016
#Activist bae just shouted out Black women. This is why he’s bae ?? #BETAwards
This young man is preaching!!!
— Shakiti (@ItsMissIsi) June 27, 2016
“Just because we’re magic, doesn’t mean we ain’t real.” @iJesseWilliams dropped that mic. #activistbae for life. https://t.co/TUdNYMBrHc
— Tia Oso (@Tia_Oso) June 27, 2016
Watch Jesse’s speech in its entirety below:
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