Beyoncé Honours Gay Man Murdered For Dancing To Her Music
August 3, 2023Beyoncé used her personal website to honour O’Shea Sibley, the 28-year-old Black gay dancer who was stabbed to death in a gas station parking lot for voguing to her music.
Concurrently, Black and queer Twitter users also commemorated Sibley, expressing outrage over his death and sharing a crowdfunding campaign for his burial costs, as ‘LGBTQ Nation’ reports.
The Grammy-winning performer wrote “Rest in Power O’Shea Sibley” on her website. He was voguing to a song from her 2022 album ‘Renaissance’, which largely features Black and queer house music, before a 17-year-old confronted him, told him to stop, allegedly called him anti-LGBTQ+ slurs, and then stabbed him in the chest before departing in a vehicle. The incident was captured on video. Police haven’t made an arrest and are investigating the murder as a possible hate crime.
Image Credit: Canva
In the liner notes for ‘Renaissance’, Beyoncé thanked her gay uncle as the album’s “inspiration.” The album won the 2022 Grammy for Best Dance/Electronica Album, making her the first Black woman to win in that category. During her acceptance speech, she said, “I’d like to thank the queer community for your love, and for inventing the genre. God bless you.”
Black and queer Twitter users honoured Sibley and shared a link to a GoFundMe campaign raising funds for his burial. As of August 1, the campaign had raised $29,696, well over its initial $10,000 (around £7,800) goal.
On the crowdfunding page, Sibley’s father Jake Kelly wrote, “O’shae not only was the glue to this family, he was a great dancer and performer for the majority of his life. His spirit lit up every room he stepped in. His smile was contagious! To know him, was to live him. He did not deserve this. Everyone loved his spirit.”
On Twitter, Brooklyn-based choreographer @wenwinsituation wrote, “In 2016, I got to choreograph a piece that O’Shae Sibley was a part of. He had such a gentle soul, was so hardworking, and just a great energy to be around. The news of his murder is quite jarring. And all because a group of men didn’t like his dancing. it’s painful. RIP O’Shae.”
Amherst College English professor @DrFrankRoberts wrote, “THEY KILLED HIM FOR VOGUING. he was 28 years young. i am completely undone with rage. you should be too. o’shae sibley: we speak your name.”
A queer cast member of the Bravo TV reality show Summer House: Martha’s Vineyard, Preston Mitchum wrote, “A Black gay man was killed over an ‘altercation’ because a straight man wanted him to stop voguing…. Black queer joy is under attack, not masculinity. Be clear. Rest in Peace, O’Shae Sibley.”
Transgender civil rights activist Alejandra Caraballo posted a screenshot of a New York Times about Sibley’s stabbing and wrote, “Hate is alive and well.”
Nonbinary public speaker Dana White wrote, “O’Shae Sibley was stabbed to death for voguing to Beyonce. In New York City. His older gay neighbor told the Times he warned him about being so visible, saw the looks, heard disgruntled comments about ‘all the rights’ we have. In 2023, that’s how far we are from freedom.”
Read related myGwork articles here:
Brooklyn Dancer Fatally Stabbed After Voguing At Gas Station
Beyoncé Makes Bathrooms Gender Neutral For ‘Renaissance Tour’
Beyonce Praises LGBT+ Community In New Interview
Beyonce Shared A Fierce Drag Tribute By YouTuber Kalen Allen And We Love It
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