Emma Watson responds to criticism over #BlackoutTuesday posts

There were plenty of celebs who showed their support for #BlackoutTuesday on June 2, as people like Drake, Rihanna and Taylor Swift shared the black box on their Instagram accounts and many other regular folks did the same. But the movement didn’t come without its share of criticism, especially towards stars like Emma Watson, who has been accused of using the hashtag to promote her own social media page’s aesthetic. Well now that the day of silence is over, Watson is finally responding.

The former Harry Potter star hopped back onto Instagram on June 3 after followers called her out for sharing three black boxes instead of one, and for laying them on top of three white boxes. Meanwhile eagle-eyed followers also realized she had put white frames around her black boxes, and they definitely weren’t there for it. “Did emma watson rly [sic] put a damn border on her blackout tuesday post so it would fit her aesthetic…,” wrote one person on Twitter. “f--k that… and f--k the fact that this is the only time she’s spoken up and it literally contributes NOTHING.”

[video_embed id='1969662']The Social hosts share their platform with black colleagues and friends[/video_embed]

“Been feeling uneasy about the deluge of perfomative wokeness on social media for ages now but Emma Watson posting three blackout photos on her Insta instead of one to maintain her grid aesthetic has finally done me in,” added another user.

Not all of the comments surrounding Watson's posts were negative, though. A number of the actress's fans also took to Twitter to defend her and her previous charity work. "Imagine thinking Emma Watson is a white feminist," one person pointed out. "Emma has been uplifting black voices for years when it wasn't a trend. Y'all are trash and I am NOT here for you dragging any ally."

Emma Watson is an activist for black lives EVERYDAY. Not like your fave celebs who jump on trends. I hate yall #BlackOutDay2020 #BlackLivesMattter #blackouttuesday #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/ZczOS3fiKy

— THEE AALIYAH FAN (@Pogo5673) June 2, 2020

While Watson didn’t directly respond to the comments or criticism, she did wait until #BlackoutTuesday was over in the U.K. before sharing three more posts. One was artwork and a poem, another was the cover of British Vogue, and another was a written address saying “I stand with you” in the caption. “There is so much racism, both in our past and present, that is not acknowledged nor accounted for,” she wrote. “White supremacy is one of the systems of hierarchy and dominance, of exploitation and oppression, that is tightly stitched into society. As a white person, I have benefited from this.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

I was holding off posting until #blackouttuesday ended in the UK.⁣ ⁣ The Artwork of my brilliant dear friend @fahamupecou “White Lies, Subtleties, Micro-Aggressions, and Other Choking Hazards”⁣ ⁣ B R O K E N O P E N (poem + text from the series BLACK MATTER LIVES) by Dr Fahamu Pecou⁣ ⁣ broken⁣ broke and hoping⁣ broke in, hoping⁣ broke.⁣ end.⁣ hoping...⁣ bro! kin hopin’!⁣ broken...⁣ hopin.⁣ broken.⁣ open.⁣ broken open!⁣ (Break)⁣ ⁣ “We can not be broken. We do not break. For too long we’ve been afraid that their violence would end us. But we are still here. Some they took, but they’ve all come back. They never truly left. We never truly leave. Like the police and other systems they’ve weaponized against us, the names of those they tried to silence go off in their ears like nuclear bombs. Names that swell in their throats and linger until they can no longer breathe. So let us haunt their dreams and their waking moments alike. Say their names: Ahmaud Arbery. Breonna Taylor. George Floyd. Let them see us. Let them hear us. No friends, we have nothing to fear. An army of Egungun warriors walk amongst us. They have tried, and for centuries they have failed to violate us... to silence us. This is not breaking. This is opening. The cracks are windows. The holes are doors. Shine your light through.” - Dr. Fahamu Pecou⁣ ⁣ Say their names #AhmaudArbery #BreonnaTaylor #GeorgeFloyd

A post shared by Emma Watson (@emmawatson) on Jun 2, 2020 at 4:00pm PDT

The 30-year-old Little Women star then revealed she’ll be using her platform to share links to resources she’s found useful to her own research and learning in the coming weeks. “I see your anger, sadness and pain. I cannot know what this feels like for you but it doesn’t mean I won’t try to,” she added.

Blackout Tuesday began as a social movement within the music industry, as organizers, record execs Jamila Thomas and Brianna Agyemang, wanted to hold accountable corporations and their partners who “benefit from the effort, struggles and successes of Black people.” The idea grew from there and by Tuesday, many people were sharing black squares and hashtags that some critics felt blocked important messages from getting through.

Black Out Tuesday posts are ineffective. People can't see useful content about the Black Lives Matter protests when they click the hashtag on instagram because of the over flow of blank black pictures. pic.twitter.com/x3SQiTwWX6

— SADÉ (@sadeyoncee) June 2, 2020

Black Out Tuesday is more than just posting a black square, it’s not a day to go silent, silence breeds complacency which in turn breeds complicity. Use the silence to continue working; educate yourself, read resources, sign petitions, share links & donate! #BlackOutTuesday pic.twitter.com/zbelpXng4m

— Natasha Pink (@NatashaPink19) June 2, 2020

only posting a black square is counterproductive, lazy & empty. 28m black out Tuesday instgrams and only 13m signs for George Floyd ?

it means nothing if you’re not actively trying to make change.this is not a trend.sign. donate. educate. #BLACKLIVESMATTER #JusticeForGeorge pic.twitter.com/jqeGzZDcRB— grace (@gracepashley) June 3, 2020

Black squares on social media aside, companies showed their support for Blackout Tuesday in other ways. Spotify added an eight minute and 36 second moment of silence to all playlists in honour of George Floyd; radio shows and TV stations like MTV and Comedy Central went dark; and a variety of publications dedicated coverage to Black Lives Matter content. 

[video_embed id='1969669']BEFORE YOU GO: Trudeau pauses before answering question on Trump[/video_embed]