If you checked your Instagram feed Tuesday, you might have noticed many accounts you follow — whether they belong to friends, or celebrities — posting black images in lieu of photos.
The gesture represents participation in Blackout Tuesday, a movement that’s encouraging people to halt social media posting for the day to take a stand against the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and other incidents of police brutality across America.
The movement follows multiple days of unrest in cities across the country that have included peaceful protests, and well as looting, arsons and clashes with police.
Who started Blackout Tuesday?
Blackout Tuesday was started by two music industry executives who wanted to hold a day to reflect on the murders of Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and other black citizens.
“We will not continue to conduct business as usual without the regard for Black lives,” wrote Jamile Thomas and Brianna Agyemang in a Sunday night post. Their mission was to hold the music industry, which benefits from “the efforts, struggles and successes of Black people” accountable, they wrote.
#TheShowMustBePaused pic.twitter.com/JHTUG34Ibj
— theshowmustbepaused (@pausetheshow) June 1, 2020
Many top record labels have joined in, as well as companies closely connected to the music industry like Live Nation, TikTok and the Recording Academy. Some labels said they won’t release any new music on Tuesday, or for the rest of the week.
Chicago celebs join the trend
Some celebrities have logged off of social media completely, while others have posted a blank black square to their millions of followers, fueling the trend.
Chicago artists like G Herbo, Jennifer Hudson, Lupe Fiasco and Taylor Bennett as well as big names like Kylie Jenner, Mick Jagger and Quincy Jones have all posted a black square to their Instagram feeds.
View this post on Instagram#blackouttuesday✊ #justiceforgeorgefloyd #peacebestill
A post shared by Jennifer Hudson (@iamjhud) on
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Lupe Fiasco (@lupefiasco) on
What not to do
Those participating in Blackout Tuesday who are posting a black square to Instagram and other social media platforms are using the hashtags #BlackoutTuesday and #TheShowMustBePaused.
Many have also used the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag, which has been widely used as a tool for protesters to communicate information through social media. But since it’s being used during the Tuesday event alongside the black squares, some activists say it’s hindering their ability to use the hashtag as a tool to communicate important information.
stop posting black squares under the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag on Instagram. it is intentionally and unintentionally hiding critical information we are using on the ground and online. pic.twitter.com/EIS44aDXXd
— y’all don’t read the room (@anthoknees) June 2, 2020
It has come to my attention that many allies are using #BlackLivesMatter hashtag w black image on insta. We know that’s it no intent to harm but to be frank, this essentially does harm the message. We use hashtag to keep ppl updated. PLS stop using the hashtag for black images!! pic.twitter.com/eG2fPaybNW
— Kenidra4Humanity ~ BLACK LIVES MATTER ~ (@KenidraRWoods_) June 2, 2020
Organizers are urging Blackout Tuesday participants to stop using the #BlackLiveMatter hashtag, so people looking for information on the Black Live Matter movement or protests organized by the group have access to that information.
Please do NOT use the Black Lives Matter hashtag when posting your blackout pics.
— Whitney Sullivan (@Sullivan_Speaks) June 2, 2020
Important information about the movement is found through that hashtag. #BlackOutTuesday pic.twitter.com/CfXtmJxRiq
