Chaka Khan is following in the footsteps of Stevie Wonder in boycotting the state of Florida.
The legendary singer tells the Huffington Post she refuses to perform in the Sunshine State. “I am boycotting Florida,” she said when asked if she’ll participate in any upcoming tributes to Trayvon Martin. “I had a booking there last week and I cancelled it. But if any tribute comes up I’ll do it. Absolutely.”
Khan says racism in America is “alive and well” and was disappointed in the George Zimmerman verdict. “The trial, number one, was a travesty,” she said. “[Racism] has gone to more of a cerebral state. But it’s alive and well. The new slavery is keeping Black men in jail.”
The state of Black men is something near and dear to Khan. This weekend, she will head to Chicago, her hometown where she is also being honored, to team up with Jesse Jackson to address the ongoing teen violence.
“It’s insane. These kids are using gangs as a rite of passage,” she says. “If we were still living in villages it would be very different. But it’s like a pseudo rite of passage, which is very sad.”