Lauryn Hill and Rohan Marley‘s daughter Selah Marley became a topic of discussion after the 23-year-old took to Instagram to defend her choice to wear a “White Lives Matter” sweatshirt during Kanye West‘s fashion show at Paris Fashion Week.
Marley’s response comes a day after West was called out by many celebrities and social media users alike for the rapper’s overall message while debuting YZY SZN 9 collection. According to the Anti-Defamation League, “White Lives Matter” is considered a hate slogan. The phrase was created by white supremacist groups in retaliation to the Black Lives Matter movement. Black Lives Matter was created in 2013 to highlight racism, discrimination and racial inequality toward Black people.
In an Instagram story shared Oct. 3, Marley wrote, “The past 24 hours has allowed me to realize that most of y’all are stuck in a hive mind mentally. You do what the group tells you to do & think.” The model added that despite the controversy that she will not be coaxed “into silence.”
She said, “Witnessing someone break free from “the agenda” sends you all into such a panic that you will do whatever it takes to force them back into the box that you feel they should exist in. All morale and empathy is eliminated due to the fact you feel justified by. your emotions. The victim becomes the victimizer. You cannot bully me, manipulate me, or coax me into silence. Nor will you bully me into being who you want me to be. I don’t care how many tweets you make, DMs you send, or articles you write.”
Marley wrapped up the Instagram story by informing her followers that she plans on opening up more about why she decided to be part of the controversial fashion show.
Marley explained, “Throughout all the chaos I have yet to speak on my experience. If you know me, you know that nothing that I do is without deep thought & intention. Wait til you hear what I have to say.”
In another Instagram story where Marley shared a screenshoot of a message she sent to West, she shared that despite the backlash she’s willing to keep the conversation going in a “healthy way.”
The message said, “I think what we did has obviously created a lot of conversation & I would like us to continue that conversation & provide the necessary depth & clarity that we are both extremely capable of. I love taking risks & embracing freedom, but in this case, I think we can continue to discuss the depth behind our decisions to show the purity of our intentions & provide healing to our community. love you so much. Let’s keeping this going—in a healthy way.”
West would later respond to Marley’s story by resharing the post. As Marley’s Instagram stories began circulating online, many pointed out that they felt the star didn’t say much or even offer a proper explanation behind her actions.
“When trying to sound “woke”, proves you’re still sleepwalking.”
“She saying a bunch of nothing.”
“She typed all of that but still didn’t validate her wearing that bullshit. What a shame.”
“When wanting to be too woke goes wrong.. girl what are you saying?!
“She just said a bunch of f–ing NOTHING. I know her grandfather is turning over in his grave.”
The flak that Marley is receiving from fans could be because of the contributions of her mother, Lauryn Hill, and her grandfather, Bob Marley, to society. Bob Marley fought for freedom for Black people. At the same time, Hill ultimately saw a turn in her career for publicly speaking about taboo issues. One topic included criticizing the Catholic church for its pedophilia scandal.
However, it’s possible that Marley and Hill’s relationship is still rocky. In Aug. 2020, the model made claims on Instagram Live that the “Nothing Even Matters” singer would beat her and that she was often angry. Hill defended herself against her daughter’s claims on her Instagram page.
“The discipline was seen through the lens of a young child who also had no place to reconcile me as mom, and me as a larger than life public figure,” Hill wrote. “If I am guilty of anything it is disciplining in anger, not in disciplining.”
She added, “The toxix venom I ingested for standing on principle, and confronting systemic racism far BEFORE it was the thing to say or do … the people who called me CRAZY and have yet to apologize and say ‘Oh yeah, we were wrong.’ Of COURSE that seeped into my home,” the New Jersey native explained.
