Ottawans show solidarity, participate in #BlackOutTuesday

People and organizations went silent online Tuesday to express solidarity with anti-racism protesters in the United States after the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last week.

A Minnesota medical examiner on Monday classified the 46-year-old black man's death as a homicide, saying Floyd's heart stopped as police restrained him and suppressed his neck, in a widely seen video that has sparked protests across the country and around the world. 

The #BlackOutTuesday movement originated with two black female music industry executives calling for a disruption of the work week to force a collective moment of reflection. 

Here are a few Ottawa leaders and organizations who went dark:

While Ottawa Public Health still updated information about the COVID-19 pandemic on its website, the health authority kept off social media for the day. 

Shifter Magazine, which publishes extensively about the black community in Canada, and is based in both Ottawa and Toronto, wrote about the online effort before staying off social media itself. 

On the Quebec side of the river, Hull—Aylmer MP Greg Fergus showed his solidarity with the protests that have spread beyond the United States and are happening around the world. 

Mayor Jim Watson posted a black square signifying his participation on Tuesday. He later said he would join a protest at the U.S. Embassy on Friday.

Both Carleton University and the University of Ottawa said they were pausing social media posts for the day.

Many of the city's sports teams, including the RedBlacks, the Ottawa 67's and the Ottawa Senators followed suit.

And in keeping with the social movement's roots, several leaders in Ottawa's music scene posted about their efforts to go dark.