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Venus Williams Faces Backlash For Remaining Silent On Black Lives Matter Movement

Published 06/05/2020, 1:33 PM EDT

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Black Lives Matter protests have become a sight of cultural warfare in the USA. The African-American community, which has long felt that it’s discriminated against in the country, has been pushed over the edge after the unfortunate demise of Black man George Floyd at the hands of a white cop. That’s why they are calling out their icons to speak on the issue. Venus Williams is facing some flak over the issue.

Tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg uploaded some tweets which show incensed black fans blasting Venus Williams. Apparently, Venus had uploaded a product endorsement through her Instagram account. This was not well received by fans considering the current crisis in the country.

They were also angry over her alleged silence on the issue. However, there were conflicts on whether that was the truth or not. Let’s find out.

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Was Venus Williams silent about the protests?

If you look at her recent social media activity, Venus has been quiet about the protests. Her sister Serena uploaded a post about equality on Instagram.

However, the fans have been very harsh to Venus for this particular post. One fan called her out for not giving back to her community. Another gave the example of other black voices standing up for the community.

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Moreover, her endorsement further angered them over the issue. There were fans accusing her of going for money when the community was facing violence. In fact, there were those who were unfollowing her.

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To be honest, there needs to be a recognition of the social background of Venus. Over the years, she’s done her best to enhance opportunities for African-American people. Social unrest can be tough and not everyone had the wherewithal to indulge themselves.

However, critics might argue that her social capital makes her much more equipped to raise her voice. Anyway, it’s a complicated issue, and giving a one-sided answer is impossible. Where do you stand on Venus Williams remaining silent on the recent surge of protests?

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Written by:

Aryan Sharma

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Aryan Sharma is a WWE and Tennis author and editor at EssentiallySports. Being a journalism graduate from Delhi University, he combines his love for creating content with an astute knowledge of almost three eras of professional wrestling. He's also a Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova fan and likes to write on the social impact of these two legends beyond their achievements on the tennis court.
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