An ”out-of-work” actor who played a police officer in a US drama has urged actors who make money from playing cops to donate to anti-racism charities in the wake of George Floyd’s killing.
Griffin Newman, who played Sam Johnson in Blue Bloods, donated $11,000, an amount based on how long he appeared in the show, and now other actors are following suit.
“I’m an out-of-work actor who (improbably) played a detective on two episodes of Blue Bloods almost a decade ago” he wrote.
“If you currently play a cop? If you make tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in residuals from playing a cop? I’ll let you do the math.”
He added the hashtag: “#BlueActorsActBlue.”
Newman’s followers immediately began tagging in actors who have played or are currently playing police officers in TV shows and films, including the cast of Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Law & Order.
Stephanie Beatriz, who plays Rosa Diaz in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, wrote: “Thank you for tagging me. Donating now.”
Other people who played cops in school plays also donated to their chosen Black Lives Matter organisations.
Protests have taken place around the world after Floyd died in Minneapolis after a police officer named Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for over eight minutes.
Chauvin was fired, arrested and charged with third degree murder and manslaughter.
