Kanye West was seen hitting the frontlines in South Side Chicago yesterday (June 4), as protests against police violence continue around the world. According to WLS-TV, ‘Ye joined Chicago Public School students and faculty to demand that school officials end their contract with the Chicago Police Department.
The protest was reportedly organized by local activist Ja’Mal Green in opposition to CPS’ $33 million contract with the police department. The protest follows several other nationwide movements to end police department contracts with schools, including Minneapolis Public Schools, which recently canceled their contract with the Minneapolis Police Department.
During the rally, Chicago protesters asked that rather than a multi-million dollar contract with police, schools reinvest that budget to fund mental health, arts and educational programs.
“Why are there officers in my school and we don’t have enough social workers?” China Smith of the Good Kids Mad City organization told WLS-TV. “Why are there officers in my school and we have to share counselors for a whole class of 2020?”
While Kanye did not address the crowd during the protest, he was seen joining the march from the CPS District Office to CPD headquarters.
On Thursday (June 4), it was revealed that ‘Ye had donated $2 million to the families of Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery. According to TMZ, the Jesus Is King rapper also set up a 529 college savings fund for Floyd’s daughter Gianna that will fully cover her college tuition. Furthermore, ‘Ye also made additional donations to help cover each family’s legal fees and donated to several black-owned businesses around Chicago.
Yesterday (June 4), the first of several memorial services for Floyd took place in Minneapolis. T.I. and his wife Tiny, Kevin Hart, Ludacris, Tyrese, Tiffany Haddish, Will Packer and more attended the service, which was led by Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson.