BEYONCE – POLICE
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) _ Will they or won’t they? Police unions in a number of cities are calling for a boycott of officers working security for Beyonce’s concerts because of her new song “Formation.” Unions in Miami; Tampa, Florida; and Nashville, Tennessee want members to skip volunteering to do security for her shows in those cities. This all started after Super Bowl Sunday when Beyonce performed “Formation,” a day after releasing the video online. Because the performances feature pro-black images and denounced the shooting of unarmed black citizens, some critics considered it “anti-police.” Beyonce’s tour kicks off with a show in Miami on April 27th. A Tampa police spokeswoman says there’s no indication officers are heeding the call to skip the voluntary shifts for the show _ and that the idea of a widespread boycott “has been blown way out of proportion.”
(NOTE: Toronto Police Association President Mike McCormack confirmed to T-V station CP-24 on Sunday that Toronto police will not boycott Beyonce’s performance at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto on May 25th)
Alwin Marshall-Squire is the Editor-in-Chief of S-Q Publications Inc., overseeing editorial strategy for GTA Weekly, GTA Today, and Vision Newspaper. He leads the publications’ mission to deliver bold, original journalism focused on the people and communities of the Greater Toronto Area, Canada, and the global Caribbean diaspora.
Also writes for GTA Weekly and GTA Today.
