Shaun King supports takedown of ‘White Jesus’ statues

Activist Shaun King believes statues depicting Jesus as a “white European” is a form of “white supremacy,” and they no longer have a place in modern society. 

King’s bold remarks come as Black Lives Matter demonstrators topple, vandalize and in some cases utterly destroy historic monuments of slave owners and prominent figures from the colonial-era.

Protesters have taken down statues in the United States, Britain and Belgium as civil unrest continues over police brutality and race relations in the wake of George Floyd’s death, Fox News reports. 

“Yes I think the statues of the white European they claim is Jesus should also come down. They are a form of white supremacy. Always have been,” King tweeted on Monday. 

READ MORE: Shaun King’s fundraising called into question again in exposé report

“In the Bible, when the family of Jesus wanted to hide, and blend in, guess where they went? EGYPT! Not Demark. Tear them down,” he added. 

King’s comments received mixed reactions and sparked debate in the comments section. In a follow-up post, he noted that “white Jesus is a lie” and “racist propaganda” used by white supremacist as a “tool of oppression.”

Yes, I think the statues of the white European they claim is Jesus should also come down.

They are a form of white supremacy.

Always have been.

In the Bible, when the family of Jesus wanted to hide, and blend in, guess where they went?

EGYPT!

Not Denmark.

Tear them down.

— Shaun King (@shaunking) June 22, 2020

In a series of tweets, the controversial media personality expressed his support of the removal of all “murals and stained glass windows of white Jesus, and his European mother, and their white friends.”

Last month, King was the subject of a lengthy report from The Daily Beast that put his questionable fundraising tactics back in the spotlight.

In the piece titled, “Shaun King Keeps Raising Money, and Questions About Where It Goes,” former employees who had been hired to work with King at The North Star speak out about his seemingly shady business practices. The online publication is a reboot of the newspaper by the same name created by Frederick Douglass, theGrio previously reported.

The The Daily Beast article notes that while no criminal or civil charges have ever been filed against King, the hashtag #ShaunKingLetMeDown recurs with some regularity. The tag has been used to highlight some of the many projects, other than The North Star, for which King has raised money, but never completed.

Yes.

All murals and stained glass windows of white Jesus, and his European mother, and their white friends should also come down.

They are a gross form white supremacy.

Created as tools of oppression.
Racist propaganda.

They should all come down.

— Shaun King (@shaunking) June 22, 2020

In response to the piece, DeRay McKesson wrote on Twitter that King should “Immediately & publicly release all former North Star staff from NDAs w/ no penalty” and “Stop soliciting funds altogether, immediately.”

Activist and attorney Imani Gandy, another critic of King, accused him of “selling wokeness to white people.”

King stated that many of the problems with The North Star are due to his own “overzealousness” and “his tendency to take on too much, too soon.”

READ MORE: Shaun King’s fundraising called into question again in exposé report

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