Beyonce Gets Help From ?Louis Farrakhan? And The Nation Of Islam

Beyonce will be getting help from Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam on her upcoming Formation World Tour, reports CNN. The “Formation” singer, following her Super Bowl performance, has caused plenty of police unions around the country to outright boycott the singer and even refuse to work security for Beyonce’s tour. However, 82-year-old Louis Farrakhan, the Nation of Islam leader, declared during a speech on Sunday that his community (the Fruit of Islam) will vow to protect Beyonce during her tour if police refuse to do their job.

“She started talking all that black stuff and white folks say, ‘Well, we don’t know how to deal with that,'” Farrakhan said at the Nation of Islam’s annual Saviour’s Day convention, according to TMZ.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGYmRUenOpw

“But when one of us shows some independence, look how you treating Beyonce now,” he said. “You gonna picket. You not going to offer her police protection? But the FOI will.”

Beyonce’s “Formation”/Super Bowl backlash also brought on an anti-Beyonce protest that was meant to take place outside of NFL Headquarters in Manhattan on February 16. This was the same day the tickets for her “Formation World Tour” went on sale, so the protest was an obvious attempt to put a dent in Beyonce’s ticket sales.

“Are you offended as an American that Beyonce pulled her race-baiting stunt at the Superbowl?” the event description said. “Do you agree that it was a slap in the face to law enforcement?”

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani certainly agreed with that sentiment.

“This is football, not Hollywood, and I thought it was really outrageous that she used it as a platform to attack police officers who are the people who protect her and protect us, and keep us alive,” Giuliani said.

But, this statement seems to willfully ignore the obvious police corruption and police brutality that has been made evident within the last couple of years, with unarmed black men like Jamar Clark, Christian Taylor, Freddie Gray, and Michael Brown being killed by police.

Beyonce and her dancers wore outfits meant to represent the attire of Black Panther Party members, and the song “Formation” features the singer proudly and unapologetically celebrating her ethnicity and culture. This is what brought on the overwhelming backlash from general audiences and police unions.

Louis Farrakhan also went on to bring up Kendrick Lamar’s performance at the Grammy’s earlier this month, which also brought on accusations of racism and backlash.

“Kendrick Lamar set a new standard,” Farrakhan said. “He freed rappers to come on up. He’s the boss.”

Interestingly, the anti-Beyonce protest did not get any actual protesters. The anti-Beyonce crowd did not even bother to show up, but instead, her supporters did. Over 30 Beyonce supporters arrived to defend the singer and protest against the anti-Beyonce protesters, while only three anti-Beyonce protesters arrived.

“I’m disappointed,” protester Spencer Jones said. “I really wanted to talk to them and hear their side. I’m not sure why they’re not here, I am kind of sad about that, but I still think coming out here was worth it.”

“Coming out here today, we just wanted to be a counter voice to that voice. That voice not being here says a lot about where they stand,” another woman said. “They’re not here. When they show up, we show up. They haven’t shown up.”

Anti-anti-Beyoncé protest growing, still no anti-Beyoncé protest. pic.twitter.com/sDcp1X6vIm

— Alex Silverman (@AlexSilverman) February 16, 2016

Black Girl Rising also organized a rally asking supporters to dress all in black to show their support for Beyonce as well as the Black Panthers.

[Photo by Allison Shelley/Getty Images]