A number of athletes have issued statements over the last week in the wake of the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, while three other officers watched. Some have even organized protests in various cities around the country, as the movement against police brutality and racial injustice has spread globally, with demonstrations this week in all 50 states and in major cities around the world.

On Wednesday, Dak Prescott joined the legion of stars from across the sports world to issue a statement condemning the systemic racism that leads to the disproportionate targeting and killing of black people by police, and pledged to donate $1 million to “improve our police training and address systemic racism through education and advocacy in our country.”

Prescott’s pledge received mixed reviews, as some questioned whether the right approach right now is to give money to police departments in expectation that it would actually lead to more effective training, and it would be on Prescott to ensure that pledge is going to the right organizations. Prescott addressed one of the chief issues at hand, which is that a “good cop” who doesn’t speak out or stand up to confront officers who abuse their power is, in fact, not good.

“When you choose to wear the badge of a police officer, you pledged to PROTECT a life and property through the enforcement of our laws and regulations. How can you claim to uphold the law when those within your ranks don’t abide by it? You need to hold your own accountable! Each of you are as guilty as the men who stood beside Derek Chauvin if you do not stand up against the systemic racism plaguing our police forces nationwide. TAKE ACTION!

“As long as cops continue to profile blacks as a threat, cops will continue to be perceived as untrustworthy. You have to CHANGE YOURSELF before you can ask anyone else to Change!”

After a number of statements from brands, teams, and even players tiptoed around that issue, Prescott addressed the problems of systemic racism that are deeply seeded in police forces around the country. Hopefully Prescott’s statement and donation can cause others to speak up about these issues and lead to actionable change in police departments, and if nothing else, keep the focus of the conversation on the real issue at hand, which is racist actions carried out by those supposedly sworn to protect and serve.

When Ruby Rose announced her surprise exit from The CW’s Batwoman, fans were naturally concerned about how the show would handle her departure, considering she, as Batwoman, was the main character. Rose’s decision to leave is a first for the Arrowverse, which has never had to deal with losing one of its lead actors before, and it sounds like the writers are taking an interesting approach to the dilemma.

According to Decider, the show is looking to cast an all-new character named “Ryan Wilder” who will replace Rose’s Kate Kane as Batwoman in the second season. While the news originally came from a leaked casting call on Reddit, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that The CW is planning to replace Rose’s character instead of simply recasting her role. Notably, Ryan Wilder will also continue the show’s commitment to featuring an LGBTQ actress as Batwoman:

“She’s likable, messy, a little goofy and untamed. She’s also nothing like Kate Kane, the woman who wore the batsuit before her,” the notice reads, according to Decider. “With no one in her life to keep her on track, Ryan spent years as a drug-runner, dodging the GCPD and masking her pain with bad habits. A girl who would steal milk for an alley cat could also kill you with her bare hands, Ryan is the most dangerous type of fighter: highly skilled and wildly undisciplined. An out lesbian. Athletic. Raw. Passionate. Fallible. And very much not your stereotypical All-American hero.”

As for Rose’s reason for leaving Batwoman, numerous sources have said that the actress was not a fan of the long hours required for the series, and it allegedly led to unpleasant experiences on set. Outside of a joint statement announcing her decision to leave, Rose has stayed quiet about exiting the show, but she recently shared a cryptic message on Instagram that would suggest there’s more to the story than is being reported.

“It wasn’t an easy decision but those who know, know..,” the actress wrote in the caption. “I didn’t want to not acknowledge everyone involved and how big this was for TV and for our community. I have stayed silent because that’s my choice for now but know I adore you all.”

You can see Ruby Rose’s message to Batwoman fans below:

(Via Decider, The Hollywood Reporter)

The next item on the docket for the NBA is figuring out how to arrange an ad-hoc schedule, something that a team of people in league offices across pro sports typically spend their entire job working on. A report from Vincent Goodwill presented one possibility for the league, but a light was quickly shined on the difficulties with even the most simple plans.

Sounds easy enough, right? If you play the eight teams who aren’t in Orlando, just skip that game and move on. The only problem is some teams, especially in the Western Conference, are more loaded up with scheduled games against teams who will be in Orlando, while others, especially in the East, are going to be skipping around a lot.

This was initially brought up by Dan Feldman of NBC Sports, who found an example involving the Raptors and Rockets.

It doesn’t take long to find other, similar situations. The Spurs’ eighth game under these rules would come against New Orleans, originally scheduled for April 5. Yet the Pelicans’ eighth game is scheduled to be against the Magic, two full games before they would be scheduled to take on San Antonio.

Keith Parish of the Fastbreak Breakfast podcast worked out the math for all of us on the bubble teams in the West and pointed out another scheduling issue for the Blazers and Grizzlies.

Sure, this may sound like semantics, but the NBA will quickly get backed into a corner in which there just aren’t enough teams to pull this off. Fortunately, this won’t involve travel, so putting something creative together would be easier than usual, but the priority of course is making sure everyone can play the same amount of games, while trying to keep previous strength of schedule intact.

The obvious solution would be for the NBA to just put out a full schedule soon, whether it includes these machinations or not. We don’t necessarily need to be privy to how it was put together, so long as it’s not overly taxing and it is fair to all parties. Weeding out the tankers will already make these games more competitive and interesting. It’s going to be good teams up against good teams every night.

There are likely a few weeks to sort the schedule out, but it has ripple effects for broadcasters, the use of gyms, and social distancing procedures to ensure teams aren’t coming into contact with one another unnecessarily.

Goodnight, sweet prince: The Gronk Era in WWE has officially come to an end. Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski signed a limited-appearance deal with WWE just in time for WrestleMania 36 earlier this year, where he appeared as host and won the 24/7 Championship from his best friend Mojo Rawley by kinda-sorta dropping from a raised platform onto a pile of guys waiting to catch him, trust fall-style.

Shortly after WrestleMania 36, the tight end, who had previously said he was retired from football, was unexpectedly traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to be reunited with Tom Brady. So what did that mean for his WWE deal? Well, it’s over, according to Wrestling Inc., who says Gronk had a clause in his contract that allowed him to exit if he returned to the football field. Thankfully, Gronk graciously did the job on his way out the door to a more-than-willing R-Truth:

According to Dave Meltzer, Gronk had a three-event deal with WWE: WrestleMania 36, SummerSlam and whatever this fall’s Saudi Arabian megashow would have been called. That’s all gone now, though, as Gronk and TB12 once again are going for a ring together this fall. When reached for comment, Mojo Rawley definitely did not say, “Alas, poor Gronk! I knew him, WWE Universe, a fellow of infinite jest, of most excellent fancy. He hath borne me on his back a thousand times, and now, how abhorred in my imagination it is! My gorge rises at it.” But maybe he’s thinking it.

Comedian, Nailed It! host, and podcast legend Nicole Byer recently published her first book, #VERYFAT #VERYBRAVE: The Fat Girl’s Guide to Being #Brave and Not a Dejected, Melancholy, Down-in-the-Dumps Weeping Fat Girl in a Bikini. It’s the When the Pawn… of book titles! Anyway, #VERYFAT #VERYBRAVE is a #VeryFunny “guide to being a #brave, bikini-wearing badass,” but if Byer decides to write another book, it should be for children. She’s good at explaining things to them, as evidenced by a post on Instagram, where she gave advice on how to talk to kids about Black Lives Matter.

After being told by one of her followers that they would “keep their head down and just let their kids watch Nailed It” (I’m picturing Helen Lovejoy), Byer wrote, “That made me boo hoo hoo. That you will allow your kid to watch me but not stand up for me. So I’ll do the work, I’ll write you a conversation to have with your white child.” It goes:

“A good way to explain to kids #blacklivesmatter: You like this black lady, right? She’s silly? She makes you tee hee hee? You would be sad if a police officer hurt her, right? Well, this is the current country we live in where someone you like can be hurt by the color of their skin and people in charge aren’t doing a f*cking (you can replace that with dang if ya kids are soft) thing about it.”

Byer later added, “The curfews, the helicopters, the police in riot gear is all because black people have asked to not be killed… that’s it. There’s literally nothing else to it. Now once a week, let’s read about sh*t (stuff for the soft kids) that happens to black people that doesn’t get covered in schools, like Juneteenth, black Wall Street, how black people have influenced most of pop culture today and aren’t credited or it’s just co-[opted].”

She ended the note with a message that all parents should be required to hear as soon as their child is born: “Raise kids who give a f*ck.” Read the whole note below.

A TikTok video showing a police officer attempting to kneel with protesters has gone viral—but not for his kneeling. The video shows an officer in Washington, D.C. kneeling in front of a group of protesters—and then immediately being lifted to his feet by fellow officers.

He knelt again, and was again immediately lifted up by the arms and pulled away. After he walked back to the protesters, an officer came up behind him and spoke something in his ear. (Anyone read lips? It’s too noisy to hear what he said.)

The TikTok post refers to two officers who knelt, and a video posted to Twitter of the same event shows a second officer kneeling at first. According to the Twitter post, the two kneeling officers were black. It appears the officers preventing the kneeling are white.

We’ve seen police officers of all races kneeling and walking with protesters this week, while at the same time seeing police responding to peaceful protesters with tear gas and rubber bullets. Some don’t trust the shows of solidarity, especially when they are followed up by militarized responses. Some feel that sincere cops who agree with the protests aren’t doing enough to make that clear with their actions.

This video footage is a visceral reminder of what good cops are up against when they go against the “blue code.” Part of these protests has to do with bad cops not being held accountable by their colleagues. Too many cops will cover for one another when they break the law or violate human decency—yet these officers won’t allow their colleagues to show solidarity with protesters and diffuse the situation by expressing their agreement with the cause. It’s striking.

These protests are about this kind of “police vs. the community” vibe that’s created when policing is done with violence and brutality. When a community doesn’t feel protected by the people who are supposed to be protectors of the community, something is wrong.

This is about far more than just arresting the officers complicit in George Floyd’s death. Individual cases of justice are important, but ongoing, systemic injustice needs to be addressed. Accountability. Reform. Better screening and training. Prioritizing deescalation and listening to what communities really want. Getting rid of racist policies and ousting racist police officers.

Too little has been done for too long. We need police like these two officers—who understanding the heart of the issue and are courageous enough to go against the status quo—to push leadership into making real, lasting change. Otherwise we’re going to keep on ending up right where we are.

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On May 25, George Floyd died at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin — as he knelt on Floyd’s neck for nearly 9 minutes — and some of his colleagues. As other police killings across the country have done, Floyd’s death immediately sparked outrage in both Minnesota and across the nation. Feeling voiceless and ignored after another life was taken at the hands of the police, fans looked to artists with large platforms to spread messages synonymous with “Black lives matter” and “no justice, no peace” to their fans. The responses from some of these artists — even from those who are members of the affected communities — have left their fans to realize they were better off with their initial silence.

One of the early entries to this trend was Lil Wayne’s commentary on his Young Money radio show four days after Floyd’s death. “Some people put a tweet out and they think they did something,” he said. “Some people wear a shirt and they think they did something. What you gonna do after that? Did you actually help the person? Did you actually help the family? Did you actually go out there and do something? So, if I ain’t about to do all that, then I ain’t about to do nothing. I’ll pray for ya.”

While his message seemed to address those who failed to follow through with their actions, his awkwardly-worded statement found fans ripping him for his words. In their eyes, a tweet or a shirt contributes to the spreading of the message, thus increasing awareness of its severity. Praying, as Wayne has seemingly resorted to, does nothing.

Questionable comments from other artists poured in throughout the week, leaving fans scratching their heads in confusion or throwing their phones in frustration. T.I. described Atlanta as “Wakanda” in response to riots in the city saying, “This city don’t deserve this, however, I understand that a lot of others do, but we can’t do this here. This Wakanda, it’s sacred, it must be protected.” DaBaby also left fans confused with his statement that read in part, “I always sit back and let the hype blow over before I give my insight,” raising many questions as to what exactly the “hype” he referred to actually was.

Elsewhere, Diddy shared a tweet which read: “This is not just a race issue this is a HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUE!!!!!!” That message left fans up in arms, wondering why it had to be either/or, rather than both. And then The-Dream stormed onto Twitter to remind his followers and fellow Atlantans that “I own things in this city, a lot of Blacks own things in this city, from Bankhead to Buckhead. Do not destroy property — that negates the decades of work. My children will not be set back by you!”

In each of the aforementioned situations, as well as many others, these well-known names left their fans and communities confused or unsure of their stance rather than aligning themselves with a message that fans could grasp onto. Their neutrality caused fans to regret lending an ear to listen, rather than focus on their social efforts. While the failure to pick a side was met with disappointed sighs from fans, the voices that came out in outright disapproval of fans set forth a wave of reconsideration, one that looked to rethink the general image of many celebrities in the eyes of some fans.

These celebrities are just a few that looked to talk sense to their fans and failed to understand their anger. However, it must be noted that many other celebrities stood hand-in-hand with their fans and the Black Lives Matter movement as a whole. Cardi B praised protestors and their efforts, Billie Eilish condemned those who aligned themselves with the “All Lives Matter” slogan, J. Cole took to the North Carolina streets with protestors in support of the movement, and both Chika and Halsey joined respective protests where they faced undeserving consequences. The individuals who are for the cause will show up and use their voice when the time calls for it.

For those who overlooked the Black Lives Matter movement (for whatever reason), a celebrity who uses their platform to acknowledge its prevalence and importance makes it that much harder to remain ignorant. However, efforts to rely heavily on these artists — and celebrities as a whole — is a risky approach. Waiting for their stance and overall message can prove regretful if it doesn’t align with the agenda at hand, failing to reach those who haven’t joined the struggle.

Celebrities cannot always be our superheroes. They cannot be relied on to walk through the crowd and stand at the forefront, or to even stand in the midst of it. With yet another life unforgivingly ripped from our community, Black people need an army of supporters to walk through the streets with ear-ringing reminders, for the umpteenth time, of the importance of our lives. The movement leaves no room for those who are neutral with their support.

The new age of social media has made celebrities more accessible than ever. However, the events in America within the past week and a half have proven that they can still be out of touch. Resources for this support are available elsewhere and civil leaders are scattered throughout cities across the country, each with varying followings and platforms. They are the individuals who will be on standby for us. Our bat signals may be acknowledged by celebrities in some instances while being ignored in others. If they see fit to provide help, they should arrive without the signal and walk with their community for a better cause, all while helping to give a voice to the voiceless.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

As demonstrations continue across the country to protest police brutality and the murder of George Floyd, many musicians have offered their support. Twitter was flooded with screenshots of financial donations, Gunna performed a livestream concert to benefit Floyd’s family, Jay-Z took out newspaper ads across the country, and Halsey described being tear-gassed and shot with rubber bullets in an LA protest. Now, Saint Jhn is offering his financial support by diverting a video shoot budget to charity.

Saint Jhn recently teamed up with Future for a remix of “Roses.” The track arrived last Friday, and this week Saint Jhn was supposed to film an accompanying video. But instead of going forward with the shoot, the rapper asked his label for the full budget and donated the money to bail funds and black-owned businesses across the country.

Announcing his charitable act on social media, Jhn said he even managed to raise the video’s budget by $40,000:

“I was gonna shoot a video for the remix to Roses that me and Future just did, we were literally gonna shoot it in the next 2 days. I just got off the phone with La Reid, I asked him to bump the budget from 60k to 100k, then I asked him to give me the video budget and don’t ask what I’m gonna do with it. He agreed.”

He seems to have chipped in an additional $25,000 of his own money as well, because he goes on to note, “I’m donating 125k across Bail Funds and black owned businesses affected right now.”

Read Saint Jhn’s full statement below.

By now you’ve likely seen a number of official statements from big corporate entities acknowledging the nationwide protests calling for justice for George Floyd and an end to police violence. For the most part, they’ve been less vague than in years past, which is a good thing. Yesterday, Viacom — which owns Comedy Central and Nickolodeon — suspended programming for a full eight minutes and 46 seconds in tribute to George Floyd and the greater BLM movement, Nike released an ad calling on Americans to recognize that racism is a problem in America (which moved Adidas, their biggest competitor, to re-share it), and the Washington Post reported that companies from Peloton to Netflix issued statements recognizing the need to stand up to the injustices of racism. Companies across the music industry also went dark all day, in what was dubbed #BlackoutTuesday.

Clearly a line is being drawn in the sand and corporations are trying to enter the conversation. For some, the commitment may prove genuine, for others it might be lip service — time (and hiring practices and wages and donations) will tell. For corporations that are still crafting a statement, and there are many right now according to WaPo, Ben & Jerry’s official statement, which was issued yesterday on Twitter, offers a solid reference point. In no uncertain terms, the brand called for the dismantling of white supremacy.

“All of us at Ben & Jerry’s are outraged about the murder of another Black person by Minneapolis police officers last week and the continued violent response by police against protestors. We have to speak out,” the statement begins, directly attributing Floyd’s death to the officers involved in his arrest. “The police officer who put his knee on George Floyd’s neck and the police officers who stood by and watched didn’t just murder George Floyd, they stole him,” continues the statement, before taking some time to offer insight into America’s troubling history with race.

“The murder of George Floyd was the result of inhumane policy brutality that is perpetuated by a culture of white supremacy. What happened to George Floyd was not the result of a bad apple; it was the predictable consequence of a racist and prejudiced system and culture that has treated Black bodies as the enemy from the beginning. What happened to George Floyd in Minneapolis is the fruit borne of toxic seeds planted on the shores of our country in Jamestown in 1619, when the first enslaved men and women arrived on this continent. Floyd is the latest in a long list of names that stretches back to that time and that shore.”

Additionally, Ben & Jerry’s offered a three-point plan on how we can collectively seek justice for the victims of state-sponsored violence and racism, which included establishing a formal process of nationwide healing and reconciliation, the passage of H.R. 40, which relates to studying appropriate remedies and reparations for people of color, and supporting Floyd’s family’s call for a national task force to draft bipartisan legislation aimed at ending racial violence.

“Unless and until white America is willing to collectively acknowledge its privilege, take responsibility for its past and the impact it has on the present, and commit to creating a future steeped in justice, the list of names that George Floyd has been added to will never end.” As the statement nears its close, it reads, “We have to use this moment to accelerate our nation’s long journey towards justice and a more perfect union.”

Ben & Jerry’s — which is owned by the massive consumer goods brand Unilever but retains “autonomous subsidiary” status — has long been a supporter of Black Lives Matter, first issuing public support for the movement in 2016. The company also has a tradition of forward-thinking initiatives, most recently coming to an agreement with migrant workers in Vermont that helped to ensure better working conditions and wages.