John Boyega

Star Wars actor John Boyega covers British GQ, and gives his first interview since addressing a Black Lives Matter protest in London in June.

The GQ article, by Jimi Famurewa with photos by Danny Kasirye, explains how John Boyega ended up indelibly writing his name into the history of the racial justice movement.

For almost five minutes, Boyega – sounding every inch the literal son of a preacher – rallies the crowd with a visceral, personal and profane account of what it’s like to be black in the same societies that gave us the barbaric deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Stephen Lawrence and the countless others like them. “I need you guys to understand how painful this shit is,” he tells the mass of raised fists and camera phones, his voice cracking. “I need you to understand how painful it is to be reminded every day that your race means nothing! That isn’t the case any more. That is never the case any more.” Voices whoop and spur him on. “We are a physical representation of our support for George Floyd. We are a physical representation of our support for Sandra Bland... for Stephen Lawrence, for Mark Duggan!”

You can read the full article in British GQ