Beyoncé’s “Formation” song and performance at Super Bowl 50 caused uproar as people likened the dancers’ apparent homage to the Black Panthers to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), saying both promoted violence and were meant to divide.
In a rare and in-depth interview with Elle magazine, Beyoncé cleared all confusions about what the song actually represents.
Beyoncé is not anti-police:
Anyone who perceives my message as anti-police is completely mistaken. I have so much admiration and respect for officers and the families of officers who sacrifice themselves to keep us safe. But let’s be clear: I am against police brutality and injustice. Those are two separate things.
If celebrating my roots and culture during Black History Month made anyone uncomfortable, those feelings were there long before a video and long before me. I’m proud of what we created and I’m proud to be a part of a conversation that is pushing things forward in a positive way.
The singer’s views on feminism:
I’m not really sure people know or understand what a feminist is, but it’s very simple. It’s someone who believes in equal rights for men and women. I don’t understand the negative connotation of the word, or why it should exclude the opposite sex. If you are a man who believes your daughter should have the same opportunities and rights as your son, then you’re a feminist.
...Working to make those inequalities go away is being a feminist, but more importantly, it makes me a humanist. I don’t like or embrace any label. I don’t want calling myself a feminist to make it feel like that’s my one priority, over racism or sexism or anything else. I’m just exhausted by labels and tired of being boxed in. If you believe in equal rights, the same way society allows a man to express his darkness, to express his pain, to express his sexuality, to express his opinion—I feel that women have the same rights.
According to Beyoncé, she doesn’t “like or embrace any label” adding, “I don’t want calling myself a feminist to make it feel like that’s my one priority, over racism or sexism or anything else.”
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