An activist who collaborated with Jay Z on his book “Decoded” said Sunday that the rapper and his wife anonymously bailed out arrested protesters in Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, Maryland.
Dream Hampton, a filmmaker and Black Lives Matter activist, tweeted “I don’t care if Jay gets mad” before adding that she “hit Jay up [for money], as I had for Ferguson, wired tens of thousands in mins,” The Guardian reported Monday. Ms. Hampton stood by her claim in an email when asked for comment by the newspaper.
Ms. Hampton’s initial tweets have been deleted, replaced by another that said “Welp, I just got the ’can you shut the [expletive] up & head to brunch’ text. Gonna erase my error ridden rant. Hope you got your little screenshot,” The Guardian reported.
Fox News’ Geraldo Rivera responded to the news on Monday, saying, “If Jay-Z put up Baltimore bail money — wish instead he invested in rebuilding CVS in W. Baltimore & provided summer recreation for local teens,” Mediaite reported Monday.
Violence and looting filled the streets of Ferguson after a grand jury decided not to indict then-Police Officer Darren Wilson for the Aug. 9 shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown. Similar acts of destruction engulfed Baltimore after Freddie Gray, 25, died April 19 after being arrested by six Baltimore police officers on April 12.
Marilyn Mosby, Baltimore’s chief prosecutor, announced on May 1 that all six officers would be charged with Mr. Gray’s death. One of the officers was charged with second-degree murder.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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