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The number of complaints about an episode of Britain’s Got Talent (BGT) in which Diversity performed a routine inspired by Black Lives Matter has risen to 15,500, Ofcom said.
The dance group, which won the talent show in 2009, took the stage with a politically charged performance during the semifinals of the ITV show this month.
It featured a white police officer kneeling over diversity star and temporary BGT judge Ashley Banjo, echoing the murder of unarmed black man George Floyd in the U.S. The entire group knelt before the start of the song. Dax’s Black Lives Matter, featuring the lyrics “I can’t breathe,” Floyd’s last words spoken.
The performance drew praise and criticism from the public, and the number of complaints to the broadcast’s watchdog has increased since the episode aired. An Ofcom spokeswoman said: “We are evaluating this content based on our broadcast rules, but we have yet to decide whether to investigate or not.”
In response to the backlash, Banjo said in an Instagram post: “At the present moment, although there is still a lot to say… But I will let this performance say it for me.
“For the thousands of messages of support of love and inclusion, thank you. And for the thousands of hateful and ignorant messages I’ve received, thank you … You highlight exactly what needs to change and why this was so important to me and the rest of [Diversity]. “
BGT judge Alesha Dixon commented in her post: “Always proud of you.”
Banjo took Simon Cowell’s place on the judging panel for the first semifinal, while the music mogul continues to recover from back surgery.
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