People Are Upset With Killer Mike for Meeting With Gov. Kemp

UPDATE (Sept. 11):

Shortly after facing backlash for his meeting with Gov. Brian Kemp, Killer Mike hopped on social media to explain what actually went down and why. He explained to one Twitter user that he was speaking on behalf of his community.

"After I sought counsel from Community activists That I know and have worked with over 20 yrs, black judges and lawyers, black Biz leaders and my neighbors I absolutely did," he tweeted."

The ATL native also said he met with his city council member, state representatives and the mayor, presumably Keisha Lance Bottoms, who oversees Atlanta.

"Absolutely," he said. "I pay taxes in Georgia and own business there. I’m checking up on my dollars At work. I also meet with my city council member, state rep and mayor.! I suggest all Georgians do the same."

He later tweeted, "Some of my issues: “Blacks In Ga” having more than 2 percent of state contracts while making up 35 percent of the state. Black men and boys getting free trade school vs building more jails. A justice system than deals with children’s trauma vs jailing them."

Killer Mike added that his decision to meet with Gov. Kemp was courageous.

"Well my 86 yr old Aunt who actually risked her life in B Ham and Selma was proud and called me courageous," he explained. "Umma lean into that cuz she did the work."

ORIGINAL STORY:

Killer Mike is facing some heat following his most recent political meetup.

On Wednesday evening (Sept. 9), Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp shared images via Twitter of himself and his wife, Marty Kemp, with Atlanta native and activist Killer Mike.

"Today, Marty and I had a great meeting with @KillerMike," the tweet reads. "We discussed how small businesses and the music industry are weathering the pandemic, the value of our skilled trade workers, and our fight to end human trafficking in Georgia. We look forward to seeing him again soon!."

Critics on social media were outraged due to accusations that Gov. Kemp implemented voter suppression, a strategy used to discourage or prevent certain groups of people from voting, during the 2018 gubernatorial election against Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams. Twitter users not only condemned the photo op, but also claimed that Kemp illegally removed hundreds of thousands of Black votes and stole the election from Abrams.

"Really @KillerMike??," one person on Twitter commented after learning of the meeting between the rapper and Kemp. "Brian Kemp illegally removed hundreds of thousands African American voters from rolls and stole an election from
@staceyabrams."

Another said, "Did you discuss how you oversaw your own election, purged 200,000 registered voters from the rolls and then stole the election from Stacey Abrams because the only way people like you can win anything is by cheating? You’re a disgrace."

Stacey Abrams accused her former opponent of voter suppression last year during an appearance on The View. "In response to what I believe was a stolen election—and I'm not saying they stole it from me, they stole it from the voters of Georgia," she explained at the time. "I cannot prove empirically that I would've won, but we will never know. And so what I demanded on Nov. 16, 2018 was a fair fight because you see voter suppression is as old as America."

According to CNN, Abrams lost the election by 1.4 percent.

Killer Mike and Gov. Brian Kemp's conversation also comes months after the rapper refused to open the doors to his Atlanta barbershops amid coronavirus despite Kemp allowing businesses to reopen. Mike said back in April that he and his wife would not open their businesses at the time because it posed a health threat to their staff and patrons.

See more reactions to folks being upset with Killer Mike for his meeting with Gov. Brian Kemp below.

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