Chris Brown has responded to a petition to prevent him from performing two concerts in South Africa later this year.
Women’s rights groups have launched a petition with nearly 40,000 signatures as of press time on Wednesday (October 16), and C. Breezy jumped into the comments on Instagram for Women for Change. I responded unfazed by their efforts.
“Can’t wait to come," Brown wrote with a heart emoji.
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The comment was left below a post detailing Women for Change’s fight to stop gender-based violence. “Thank you @darrencampher.com_ and everyone who stood with us. This is about more than Chris Brown, it’s about standing up for the millions of survivors of gender-based violence ” reads the caption. “Join us in demanding accountability and sign the petition!”
The embattled R&B superstar’s comment received more than 6,000 likes, with many fans expressing their support for Brown’s cheeky response. One excited fan wrote: “I got my ticket, there’s nothing I can do about it.”
Women for Change first launched the petition on Change.org on October 2nd. South Africa has a long history of abuse and has one of the “highest rates of femicide and gender-based violence in the world,” the BBC reports.
According to the petition, the group is calling on concert promoters and the South African government to “reconsider” Brown’s two performances 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 extremely disappointed,” Sabina Walter, executive director of Women for Change, told the BBC. “This 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 harmful message that fame and power trump accountability.”
Despite the backlash, there remains overwhelming demand for tickets for Brown’s December 14th and December 15th performances. He reportedly sold out the 94,000-capacity venue in less than two hours, prompting show organizers to add a second date at FNB Stadium.
