Halsey Explains Why She Doesn’t Say ‘We’ When Discussing Injustice Against Black Community

Halsey, who has been an active and vocal participant in the ongoing protests against systemic racism and police brutality following the murder of George Floyd, responded to a post claiming she “never claims” her black side.

Halsey’s father is black and her mother is white. “Notice how @Halsey never claims her black side, but she ‘supports.’ Stop being ignorant. She’s never claimed her Black side. This is why I will NEVER support her. On her post she says ‘let black ppl speak,’ not ‘let our ppl speak.’ Nah, f–k her,” they wrote in a now-deleted tweet.

“im white passing. it’s not my place to say ‘we.’ it’s my place to help. i am in pain for my family, but nobody is gonna kill me based on my skin color. I’ve always been proud of who I am but it’d be an absolute disservice to say ‘we’ when I’m not susceptible to the same violence,” she responded.

This isn’t the first time Halsey spoke out about being biracial but with the privilege of being white passing. During a 2017 interview with Playboy, she opened up about learning to accept that about herself.

“I’m white-passing. I’ve accepted that about myself and have never tried to control anything about black culture that’s not mine,” she said, explaining that she still strongly identifies as a black woman.

“I look like a white girl, but I don’t feel like one. I’m a black woman,” the singer explained. “So it’s been weird navigating that. When I was growing up I didn’t know if I was supposed to love TLC or Britney.”