Doechii said using her moment in the spotlight at the recent BET Awards to denounce President Trump’s immigration raids in Los Angeles felt like the right thing to do.
“I’m not that desensitized, and it felt right,” the Grammy-winning performer told British Vogue in a new cover story. “I felt like I needed to use that moment, and they were live, so it wasn’t shit they could do about it.” She added, “I was born to do this,” in reference to rising to the occasion of her fame, despite the pressures that come with increased notoriety.
The BET Awards were held at the Peacock Theater in Downtown Los Angeles on June 9, a time when United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had recently been carrying out raids across the area. The sweeps sparked widespread protests, resulting in clashes between protestors and law enforcement, some of which were happening not far from the venue that night.
Upon taking the stage to accept the trophy of best female hip hop artist at the BET Awards, Doechii, a first-time attendee, first paid tribute to her fellow nominees before recognizing the fraught times.
“As much as I’m honored by this award, I do want to address what’s happening right now outside of the building. There are ruthless attacks that are creating fear and chaos in our communities in the name of law and order. Trump is using military forces to stop a protest, and I want y’all to consider what kind of government it appears to be when every time we exercise our democratic right to protest, the military is deployed against us,” she stated. “What type of government is that? People are being swept up and torn from their families, and I feel it’s my responsibility as an artist to use this moment to speak up for all oppressed people, for Black people, for Latino, for trans people, for the people in Gaza.”
As she ended the speech, the applause in the theater crescendoed. “We all deserve to live in hope and not in fear, and I hope we stand together, my brothers and my sisters, against hate and we protest against it.”
The moment went viral and has been viewed millions of times online. See the speech below.