The time for #change is here. The time to #unify is now. #StoptheViolencepic.twitter.com/l4BJl3NgHF
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) July 20, 2016
An unexpected alliance has formed between Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck and rapper the Game, whose real name is Jayceon Terrell Taylor.
This week, the duo released a public service announcement aimed at curbing violence across the city. In the 48-second clip, posted just days after Beck showed up at an anti-violence rally for gang members organized by the Compton rapper in South Central LA, the pair highlight some pretty startling statistics about violence in the City of Angels and the impact it’s had on their streets over the last year.
According to Beck, 80 percent of victims and shooters “were young men of color.” Almost 1,000 people were shot in 2015. Nearly 300 of them died, according to Beck.
“We have to be more positive. We have stop killing one another,” says the Game. “Humanity, it has to resurface. So this is my stand, a positive stand to unite. Let’s unite, stop the violence. Be the change.”
“Far too many of our young men are victims of senseless shootings at the hand of suspects who look just like them,” said Beck in a statement. “The time for change is here. The time to unify is now! Together we must stop the violence.”
Just two weeks ago, Beck and the Game met after entertainer and fellow rapper Snoop Dogg led a peaceful protest to LAPD’s downtown headquarters, where a graduation ceremony for new officers was taking place, reports the Los Angeles Times. The demonstration came on the heels of a deadly attack on police in Dallas, just days after two high-profile police killings of unarmed Black men in Minnesota and Louisiana.
Following the graduation, Snoop Dogg, the Game and a handful of other protesters met privately with Beck, Mayor Eric Garcetti and other police officials for about 45 minutes, where they openly discussed their feelings regarding recent events and the need for open dialogue addressing not only police shootings but violence in the community and the traumatic aftermath.
According to the LAPD, the PSA is part of a #StopTheViolence campaign featuring prominent public figures sharing a message about the importance of dialogue and mutual accountability to make the city’s communities stronger.
What are your thoughts on the Game’s partnership with Beck? Sound off in the comment section below.
