Like many other celebs, Mischa Barton took to social media on Thursday, July 7, to share her thoughts about the death of Alton Sterling, who was fatally shot by a policeman on Tuesday, but her post was met with major criticism.
“I’m truly heart broken to watch videos like the #altonsterling execution. This may have been going on forever in the United States but thank god the pigs get caught on camera now,” the 30-year-old actress wrote in the post, which she has since deleted. “Its unthinkable and an embarrassment to America. The country I was brought up in. Somebody make change. We need gun control and unity. And a real President so think about that when this election is around the corner. The world is a precarious place right now. #stop #reflect and #act appropriately.”
While Barton’s sentiments were well-intentioned, her Instagram tribute’s accompanying photo — a snapshot of the O.C. alum dressed in a black bikini sipping rosé on a yacht — infuriated her fans.
“This isn’t about you. Change the pic if you want people to take your expressed sentiment seriously,” one commenter wrote, while another fumed: “Talking about someone’s death while shamelessly posting a picture of yourself in a bikini is disgusting.”
“An embarrassment to America is you sipping rosé on a yacht trying to compare your life to most Americans. Get over yourself,” an angry Instagram user spewed. “This fatality affects your life in NO way.”
Other than deleting her post, Barton has yet to respond to the backlash.
As previously reported, Sterling, 37, was shot by police on Tuesday, July 5, at a convenience store where he was selling homemade CDs and DVDs. A video filmed by a community activist has since circulated online, sparking major outrage.
In the clip, one officer can be heard yelling, “Get on the ground! Get on the ground!” As the camera cuts away, gunshots are heard and the onlooker can be heard yelling, “They shot him!”
According to The Washington Post, Sterling is the 122nd black person who has been shot and killed by the police in 2016 alone. On Wednesday, July 6, another black man named Philando Castile was fatally shot by an officer after he was pulled over for a traffic stop in Falcon Heights, Minnesota.
Aside from Barton, other celebrities who have spoken out about Sterling’s death include Drake, Amy Schumer, Zendaya and Jesse Williams.
