The stars of “Grey’s Anatomy” have knelt to join the growing movement against racial injustice and President Donald Trump’s attacks on free speech rights.
In a photo shared on Instagram, the show’s creator, Shonda Rhimes, took a knee beside “Grey’s Anatomy” stars Ellen Pompeo and Jesse Williams with her hand over her heart ― a gesture that has come to represent a form of protest against racial inequality and police brutality.
Rhimes first posted photos of the cast in celebration of the show’s 300th episode, writing in the caption, “We turned 300 today!” In the following photo, she wrote, ”... and we took a knee in solidarity of racial justice.”
A number of celebrities, athletes and activists have been kneeling on one knee this week, mirroring the protests launched last year by former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick.
Kaepernick began taking a knee during the national anthem last year as a protest against the spike in police killings of black people. It is believed that Kaepernick, a free agent, hasn’t been hired by an NFL team this year because of his silent protests.
On Friday, Trump took aim at the Kaepernick-inspired protests by calling for NFL owners to fire any athlete who kneels during the anthem. Trump also called for fans to boycott the games.
Since then, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and nearly all coaches and team owners have spoken out against the president’s comments in some way. As NFL games played out over the weekend and on Monday, teams demonstrated their own forms of protest or unity during the anthem, including kneeling, linking arms and staying off the field during the anthem.
“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick told NFL.com’s Steve Wyche last year in an effort to explain why he was taking a knee during the anthem.
“To me, this is bigger than football, and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.”
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