Keke Palmer is setting the record straight. The 26-year-old actress took to Instagram on Saturday to address rumors that her Good Morning America talk show, Strahan, Sara & Keke, was canceled because she spoke up about racial inequality amid the Black Lives Matter movement.
Strahan, Sara & Keke — starring Michael Strahan, Sara Haines and Palmer — was taken off of ABC’s schedule in March, with a daily coronavirus report airing in its place. Earlier this month, reports surfaced that ABC had decided to cancel Strahan, Sara & Keke, and replace it with GMA 3: What You Need to Know. Strahan still hosts GMA.
Some fans tried to draw connections between the SSK news and Palmer’s recent comments about the systemic racism in America. “Ain’t it weird how Keke Palmer was protesting and preaching to the police about Racism in our country then ABC decides to cancel her show,” one post read — which caused Palmer to speak out.
“I want to speak on this simply because I hate the narrative that if you speak your mind as a black person that you will in some way be punished. I have seen this going around and at first I ignored but in this climate I realized this is a dangerous message to send to our generation and the generation coming up,” Palmer wrote. “If anything my speaking out showed the corporations I work with how important my voice is and anyone that has a POV.”
“The reality is I was never signed to SSK as one would a seasonal show. This business is dynamic and instead of thinking of me as a ‘series regular’ see me see me as a brand that works with the corporation Disney/ABC News and this particular show I was on is no longer,” she continued. “That does not mean the relationship I have with them dies, that means it evolves.”
Palmer said that she hates talking about business but didn’t want rumors about why SSK was canceled to make her fans scared to speak out about what’s important. “When I see such fear mongering comments I want to speak out so that no one ever feels or thinks that speaking out will cost them their job! I’m sure it can and has before, but let’s also recognize when it has not. That way more of us with our own minds speak out against any injustices we see,” she reasoned.
“Trust me, walking in my truth has always made my blessings OVERFLOW and connect to those that are like minded and not with those that are not. Do not believe this lie. Stay courageous and stay true because GOD HAS YOU ALWAYS ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️,” Palmer concluded.
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I want to speak on this simply because I hate the narrative that if you speak your mind as a black person that you will in some way be punished. I have seen this going around and at first I ignored but in this climate I realized this is a dangerous message to send to our generation and the generation coming up. If anything my speaking out showed the corporations I work with how important my voice is and anyone that has a POV. The reality is I was never signed to “SSK” as one would a seasonal show. This business is dynamic and instead of thinking of me as a “series regular” see me see me as a brand that works with the corporation Disney/ABC News and this particular show I was on is no longer. That does not mean the relationship I have with them dies, that means it evolves. I hate talking about business because it can seem a bit weird and gets quite technical lol. But when I see such fear mongering comments I want to speak out so that no one ever feels or thinks that speaking out will cost them their job! I’m sure it can and has before, but let’s also recognize when it has not. That way more of us with our own minds speak out against any injustices we see. Trust me, walking in my truth has always made my blessings OVERFLOW and connect to those that are like minded and not with those that are not. Do not believe this lie. Stay courageous and stay true because GOD HAS YOU ALWAYS ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
A post shared by BIG BOSS ?? (@keke) on Jul 18, 2020 at 12:40pm PDT
Palmer made headlines last month after a video of her at a Los Angeles protest went viral. The actress was protesting police brutality and racial injustice when she was filmed speaking with a member of the National Guard, asking him to march with the protesters in a show of solidarity.
“Sometimes, going against authority is the only remedy for change, especially when we have seen, too often, those authority figures step over the line,” Palmer wrote in a guest column for Variety, adding that law enforcement kneeling at protests “isn’t enough.”
“Kneeling has become a mockery of sorts. Kneeling on George Floyd’s neck is what killed him. Now we see police officers kneeling and then, moments later, attacking peaceful protesters,” she said. “At this point, the kneeling has no meaning.”
Palmer said she couldn’t understand the National Guardsman’s reasoning for why his unit chose not to march with the protesters.
“They didn’t march with us, and while one offered to for a short stretch, he also said he had to ‘protect the businesses’ and buildings in the area,” the Hustlers star wrote. “But what about the people who are actually dying? In that moment, I wasn’t thinking about who may or may not touch a building; I was thinking about how we’re out here, fighting for a call to protect human lives.”
