Jaime King says that she was arrested on Tuesday, June 2, while protesting in Los Angeles in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.
“Currently arrested for a peaceful protest,” the Hart of Dixie alum, 41, tweeted while noting that she was “writing in handcuffs” from the back of a bus. “EVERYONE WAS PEACEFUL — Jaime and the rest of my sisters on this bus. 77th precinct.”
In a follow-up tweet, King added: “Currently still on the bus for over 4 hours. Took us from 77th precinct to San Pedro. Women w/no access to vital meds, bathrooms, bleeding through their pants. They are laughing at us. #BlackLivesMattter.”
King has vocalized her support for the Black Lives Matter movement leading up to her participation in Tuesday’s gathering. That same day, she lent her Instagram account to her pal, actress Krystina Arielle Tigner, as a way to “amplify her voice” amid social media’s #BlackoutTuesday trend.
“She uses her own platform to bring awareness to the struggles that she and other Black people face on a daily basis,” the White Chicks actress wrote via Instagram, while sharing a photo of the two pals. “Black voices matter, black stories matter, and black lives matter. How we use our voices and our platforms is important. It isn’t enough to just say black lives matter and go back to our carefully curated social media squares. We have to use our influence to uplift and raise the voices of those that can change the world. It’s a privilege to be able to walk out the door without fear that you won’t walk back in because the color of your skin was seen as a threat. It’s a privilege to have the platform that I have and to be able to be heard.”
King continued, “I will never know firsthand the experiences of Existing while black. I will never send my sons out the door with the fear that they’ll become a hashtag movement because their skin color was seen as a threat. But what I can do is listen. I can search my own biases. I can hear my friends when they say they are hurting and instead of saying ‘I’m so sorry.’ I can say I see you, I hear you, and fight to make room for them in a world that makes that hard.”
King’s recent protest participation comes weeks after she announced her split from estranged husband Kyle Newman. The pair are parents of sons James, 6, and Leo, 4.
Amid the global coronavirus crisis, Black Lives Matter protests have popped up worldwide in response to the death of George Floyd. The Minneapolis, Minnesota, resident died on May 25 after police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into his neck. An independent autopsy confirmed that Floyd died of “asphyxiation from sustained pressure.”
Chauvin, 44, was arrested on May 29 on third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter charges after being fired by the Minneapolis Police Department. He remains in jail.
Stars including Nick Cannon, Keke Palmer, Ariana Grande, Cole Sprouse and Halsey have shown their support by participating in related protests countrywide.
