The news that 21 Savage had been arrested and detained by ICE, and might eventually be deported to the U.K., sent shockwaves across the entertainment world. His detainment for allegedly overstaying his visa is being viewed by many as a grave injustice, including Black Lives Matter. The advocacy group has started a petition demanding that the rapper not be deported.
The #Free21Savage petition was created by Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Khan-Cullors on Monday, and appears on the Campaigns for Change website. In it, the rapper, who's real name is She’yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, is described a byproduct of the persecuction of minority men in America.
"The circumstances of Mr. Abraham-Joseph's detention stand as a testament to the consistent and historically under-reported harassment and targeting of Black immigrants," the post reads. "The US' violent history of criminalizing Blackness intersects with its deadly legacy of detaining and deporting Black and Brown immigrants. This needs to stop today!"
Although the details surrounding 21's arrest have been disputed, we do know that the rapper is legally a British citizen and that he reportedly entered the country in 2005. His visa is said to have expired the following year. Now, due to his criminal history, Savage is being held without bail as his fate is being decided.
"There are around 4.2 Million Black immigrants in the U.S. - 619,000 are undocumented," the petition reads. " Mr. Abraham-Joseph has been in the United States since he was a young child. Atlanta is his home."
The rapper's lawyer, Charles H. Kuck, also chimed in on Monday. "This is a civil law violation, and the continued detention of Mr. Abraham-Joseph serves no other purpose than to unnecessarily punish him and try to intimidate him into giving up his right to fight to remain in the United States," he said in a statement. "He rose above the difficult circumstances of his youth to achieve success and make contributions to our society that rival any of those by a natural born citizen. Mr. Abraham-Joseph has US citizen children that he supports and is eligible for relief from deportation. We and he will fight for his release, for his family, and his right to remain in our country. No one would expect less from him."
