Common Pays Tribute to Unarmed Black Teens, Murdered Cops at Golden Globes

After winning the 2015 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, rapper Common took the podium to pay tribute to the unarmed black teens and murdered police officers in the past year.

Common and John Legend composed the song “Glory” for historical drama Selma. The rapper’s speech indirectly mentioned a broad range of news stories, including the shootings of unarmed black men in Ferguson, Mo., and Staten Island, N.Y., as well as the killing of two police officers in Brooklyn, N.Y., last year.

Read a portion below:

The first day I stepped on the set of Selma, I began to think this was bigger than a movie. As I got to know people of the civil rights movement, I realized: I am the hopeful black woman who was denied her right to vote; I am the caring white supporter, killed on the front lines of freedom; I am the unarmed black kid who maybe needed a hand but was instead given a bullet; I am the two fallen police officers murdered in the line of duty. Selma has awakened my humanity.

Watch below, via NBC:

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