Vidostream | News, sport and opinion from the Vidostream's US edition

https://vidostream.com

Rudy Giuliani calls Beyoncé’s VMA performance ‘a shame’

Rudy Giuliani vs. Beyoncé, Round 2.

For the second time this year, the former New York City mayor and prominent Donald Trump surrogate is sharply criticizing Queen B — this time following the megastar’s show-stealing tribute to Black Lives Matter at Sunday’s MTV Video Music Awards.

“It’s a shame!” Giuliani said on Fox News on Monday morning while discussing Beyoncé’s 15-minute performance, which included a visual composition about gun violence against black people in America.

Just as he did in June, the former mayor asserted, “I saved more black lives than any of those people you saw on stage.”

Beyoncé, Rudy Giuliani (Photos: Lucas Jackson/Reuters, Carlo Allegri/Reuters)
Beyoncé, Rudy Giuliani (Photos: Lucas Jackson/Reuters, Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

Beyoncé arrived at the VMAs with the mothers of four victims of fatal police shootings whose deaths sparked the national outrage that gave rise to the Black Lives Matter movement. Accompanying the pop superstar were the mothers of Trayvon Martin (Sybrina Fulton), Michael Brown (Lesley McSpadden), Eric Garner (Gwen Carr) and Oscar Grant III (Wanda Johnson). Fulton, McSpadden and Carr were also featured in a scene holding portraits of their slain sons in the film component of Beyoncé’s visual album “Lemonade,” which was released earlier this year.

During a performance of the song “Pray You Catch Me,” the opening track on the album, Beyoncé stood among 16 dancers all bathed in white spotlights. As she sang, the dancers fell to the ground alone or in pairs in time with beats from the music, and the lights pooling around them turned blood red, another apparent nod to the victims of gun violence.

After all 16 dancers had fallen, Beyoncé walked forward onstage alone and a black man wearing a hoodie followed her as the song ended — an image that recalled slain Florida teen Trayvon Martin. Martin was wearing a hoodie when he was deemed suspicious by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, who fatally shot the young man in February 2012.

Beyoncé's guests at the VMAs included the mothers of four victims of fatal police shootings. (Getty Images)
Beyoncé’s guests at the VMAs included the mothers of four victims of fatal police shootings. (Getty Images)

“Her dancers were circling around her and one by one, they fell to the ground, and there were red lights underneath them. And that was supposed to symbolize cops killing black individuals,” “Fox & Friends” co-host Ainsley Earhardt told Giuliani while discussing the performance.

Giuliani responded: “You’re asking the wrong person because I had five uncles who were police officers, two cousins who were, one who died in the line of duty. I ran the largest and best police department in the world, the New York City Police Department. And I saved more black lives than any of those people you saw on stage by reducing crime and particularly homicide by 75 percent.”

Giuliani scowled when co-host Brian Kilmeade commented, “And Beyoncé is an extremely popular and powerful performer, and when she does stuff like that, that message to the next generation is pretty indelible.”

“It’s a shame!” Rudy remarked. “It’s a shame!”

It was not the first time the 2008 Republican presidential hopeful attacked Beyoncé for being anti-police: He called her appearance at this year’s Super Bowl “ridiculous.” Some interpreted the costumes and choreography from her Super Bowl halftime performance of “Formation” as a political statement and homage to the Black Panther party.

Giuliani was among her critics.

“This is football, not Hollywood, and I thought it was really outrageous that she used it as a platform to attack police officers who are the people who protect her and protect us, and keep us alive,” he said during an appearance on the Fox News Channel.

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website. By continuing to browse, you are agreeing to our Cookie Policy.
You did not use the site, Click here to remain logged. Timeout: 60 second