Aminé Talks Portland's Black Lives Matter Protests, Racism & Gentrification

(AllHipHop News) Portland became the focus of national news coverage in July. The media highlighted the Black Lives Matter protests in the nearly 80% Caucasian city after unidentified armed federal officials were seen taken people off the street in unmarked vehicles.

Violent clashes between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents and protestors eventually erupted in Portland. Protest groups such as the “Wall of Moms,” “Wall of Dads,” and “Wall of Vets” joined the demonstrations as President Donald Trump threatened to send more federal officers into Oregon’s most populous city.

Hip Hop artist Aminé is one of the most well-known celebrities to emerge from Portland. As the 26-year-old Republic recording artist was on a promotional run for his new album Limbo, he was asked about the BLM movement in his hometown.

“I’m generally not surprised because Portland is liberal. It’s literally the definition [of] liberal. Everyone in that city has a Black Lives Matter post in front of their lawn; they support the movement, and they’ve said that for years. But the history of [Portland] is kind of hypocritical,” Aminé told Grammy.com.

He added, “For a city to be so liberal, it was so racist—the way I was brought up. So for me, Portland is just like the South. Growing up there, it never felt welcoming for anyone who was Black or any sort of minority or was an immigrant. Them [protesting] is a beautiful thing—I love the protesting. But it’s also like, I’m not gonna send my Black family or Black friends out there to protest. Because if they’re beating up white people, what do you think they’re gonna do to us?”

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Aminé, a son of Ethiopian immigrants, has expressed solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. In particular, he posted on Instagram about the tragic deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor at the hands of Minneapolis and Louisville police officers, respectively.

The “Shimmy” performer acknowledged his fellow citizens of Portland for standing up against racial injustice. However, Aminé also made a direct correlation between racism and the gentrification that he believes is prevalent in the Pacific Northwest locale.

“Them protesting is what they should’ve done 20, 30 years ago. So I guess it is a long time coming,” expressed Aminé during his interview with the Recording Academy. “But the problem is, the people that are protesting are the same people that are moving the Black people out of Portland neighborhoods and gentrifying the hell out of the city.”

The 2017 XXL Freshman Class member continued, “So my love for Portland is like a bittersweet relationship… It’s the place where I grew up and I love it to death, but it’s also a place that never made me feel like I was welcome.”