Title
Declaring solidarity with and support for the #MuteRKelly campaign, a grassroots movement that seeks to remedy decades of silence surrounding the sexual abuse of young Black women and girls by denying R. Kelly a public platform within the City of Philadelphia and nationwide.
Body
WHEREAS, R&B superstar recording artist Robert "R" Kelly has a documented 25-year history of emotionally, physically, mentally, and sexually abusing women, and notably, young Black girls; and
WHEREAS, We believe survivors; and
WHEREAS, Black girls matter; and
WHEREAS, Survivors have charged R. Kelly with abuse, statutory rape, and child pornography since the mid-1990s, both in court and in the public sphere. Nevertheless, R. Kelly's career continued to blossom. According to consistent accounts, including many from groundbreaking and persistent Chicago Tribune reporter Jim DeRogatis, R. Kelly has long used his fame and fortune to prey on young Black girls as young as 13, and to silence them afterwards; and
WHEREAS, Andrea Kelly, Tiffany Hawkins, Lisa van Allen, Tracy Sampson, Patrice Jones, Kitti Jones, Montina Woods, Asante McGee, Jerhonda Pace, Lizzette Martinez, and others have bravely shared their trauma as survivors of R. Kelly, in hopes of amplifying the calls to censure the singer and hold him accountable. These women have continued to take a stand through sharing their stories of physical assault, sexual and emotional abuse, incarceration, and public shaming, even when American society has, time and time again, given the musician a pass, valuing his talent over their lives and safety; and
WHEREAS, Following Jim DeRogatis' July 2017 Buzzfeed report that R. Kelly incarcerated women against their will and created a human trafficking ring, Kenyette Barnes and Oronike Odeleye aimed to prevent him from performing in their home city of Atlanta, and created the #MuteRKelly movement-a nationwide, grassroots movement led by Black women. The campaign aims to deny R. Kelly a...
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