#BlackLivesMatter Nia Wilson
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 05: Anne Hathaway attends the "Ocean's 8" World Premiere at Alice Tully Hall on June 5, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/FilmMagic)
in Celebs, Humanity, Social News

Anne Hathaway Posts Heartfelt Message On The Murder Of A Black Teenager And White Privilege

Nia Wilson was the youngest child of eight; six sisters and two brothers. At only eighteen, she was brutally murdered in a stabbing attack in Oakland, California, after stepping off the train by a man she didn’t know.

Her killer is white, while Nia was black. There has been controversy because many feel that this should be categorized as a hate crime.

While police are saying they currently have no evidence the attack was racially motivated, they are not completely ruling out the possibility.

A few days after the murder, Anne Hathaway posted this stirring message to her Instagram. Hathaway implored white people to reckon with their privilege…

The murder of Nia Wilson- may she rest in the power and peace she was denied here- is unspeakable AND MUST NOT be met with silence.  She is not a hash tag; she was a black woman and she was murdered in cold blood by a white man. White people- including me, including you- must take into the marrow of our privileged bones the truth that ALL black people fear for their lives DAILY in America and have done so for GENERATIONS.  White people DO NOT have equivalence for this fear of violence. Given those givens, we must ask our (white)selves- how “decent” are we really?  Not in our intent, but in our actions?  In our lack of action? Peace and prayers and JUSTICE for Nia and the Wilson family xx Note: the comments for this post are closed. #blacklivesmatter #antiracist #noexcuse #sayhername #earntherighttosayhername

A post shared by Anne Hathaway (@annehathaway) on

The post reads:

“The murder of Nia Wilson- may she rest in the power and peace she was denied here- is unspeakable AND MUST NOT be met with silence.  She is not a hash tag; she was a black woman and she was murdered in cold blood by a white man.”

“White people- including me, including you- must take into the marrow of our privileged bones the truth that ALL black people fear for their lives DAILY in America and have done so for GENERATIONS.  White people DO NOT have equivalence for this fear of violence.
Given those givens, we must ask our (white)selves- how ‘decent’ are we really?  Not in our intent, but in our actions?  In our lack of action?
Peace and prayers and JUSTICE for Nia and the Wilson family xx”

“Note: the comments for this post are closed.”

“#blacklivesmatter #antiracist #noexcuse
#sayhername #earntherighttosayhername“

People were here for Anne Hathaway after writer and civil rights activist Shaun King shared it on Twitter.

In conversations about white privilege though, it bears notice that the media amplification of Hathaway’s statement is also a sign of her own privilege.

Hathaway’s statement is admirable, but it is being covered much wider in mainstream media than the statements that were made by celebrities of color.

Statements were also shared and made by actress Tracee Ellis Ross…

…rapper and actor Common…

…writer and activist Shaun King himself…

…California’s United States Representative Barbara Lee…

…and actress Susan Kelechi Watson.

Regardless of the message or the messenger, what must not get lost is Nia Wilson.

#sayhername

H/T: Twitter, Buzzfeed, Instagram

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Written by Dana Levinson

Dana Aliya Levinson is an actress, writer, and trans activist. She graduated with honors from the New School where she wrote extensively about political and ethnic identity in the middle-east. She was a 2014-2015 Dramatists Guild Fellow, and has written about politics and trans issues for The Huffington Post, Women's Health, Nylon, and The Notice Blog.