Chris Brown has responded to a petition looking to ban him from performing a pair of concerts in South Africa later this year.
A women’s rights advocacy group launched a petition that had nearly 40,000 signatures as of press time on Wednesday (Oct. 16), and C. Breezy hopped into the Women for Change Instagram comments with an unfazed reply to their efforts.
“Can’t wait to come,” Brown wrote with a heart emoji.
The comment was left under a post detailing Women for Change’s battle to stop gender-based violence. “Thanks to @darrencampher.com_ and everyone standing with us. This goes beyond Chris Brown – it’s about standing up for millions of survivors of Gender-Based Violence,” the caption reads. “Join us in demanding accountability, Sign the Petition!”
The embattled R&B superstar’s comment has over 6,000 likes as fans had plenty to say while chiming in to support Brown’s cheeky response. “Tickets are secured, lessss goo,” one excited fan wrote.
Women for Change initially launched the petition on Oct. 2 on Change.org. The BBC reports that South Africa has a long history of abuse and one of the “highest rates of femicide and gender-based violence in the world.”
According to the petition, the group wants the concert’s promoters and South African government to “reconsider” having Brown perform a pair of shows at Johannesburg’s FNB Stadium in mid-December.
“When I saw the news that Chris Brown was coming to South Africa, I was shocked and deeply disappointed,” Women for Change executive director Sabina Walter said to the BBC. “The petition was started to send a strong message that we will not tolerate the celebration of individuals with a history of violence against women.”
Walter added: “When someone like Chris Brown is given a platform in a country where GBV is at crisis levels, it sends a damaging message — that fame and power outweigh accountability.”
Even with the backlash, there remains an overwhelming demand for tickets to see Brown at his Dec. 14 and Dec. 15 shows. He reportedly sold out the 94,000-capacity venue in less than two hours, causing show organizers to add a second FNB Stadium date.
Yahoo
