Rappers The Game and Snoop Dogg organized and led a march for men of color to Los Angeles Police Department headquarters on Friday with the aim of uniting minorities and rebuilding relations with police.
In a post on Instagram on Friday morning, The Game called upon "all African-American men, Mexican-American men, and any other race of real men with heart" to march peacefully to LAPD headquarters.
The call to action came after five police officers were fatally shot in Dallas, Texas, Thursday night.
The Game urged the men to "leave all women and children at home" and not bring weapons to the event.
"Do not come high or belligerent," he wrote. "We don't need any HOT HEADS or anyone there for the wrong reasons."
The rapper said the demonstration was aimed at unifying minorities and "starting something new here in the city of Los Angeles."
His full Instagram post read:
Operation H.U.N.T Meet NOW at Joe's auto park parking 1221 west 3rd street Los Angeles California 90017
Calling: ALL AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN, MEXICAN AMERICAN MEN & any other RACE of REAL MEN with heart to stand with us today & walk peacefully to the LAPD headquarters. [LEAVE ALL WOMEN & CHILDREN AT HOME... THIS IS OUR MISSION FOR THEM]
Do not: bring any weapons or anything illegal. Do not come high or belligerent.. We don't need any HOT HEADS or anyone there for the wrong reasons... We will stand as we are, UNIFIED. I'm calling ALL GANGS, ALL RACES, ALL GROWN MEN affiliated or not & WE WILL STAND UNIFIED tomorrow !!!! Our numbers are all the weapons we need !!! We do not need to be dumb, retarded or uncivilized today... ALL WE NEED IS EACH OTHER... I will not lead any of you into a trap !!!!! Objective: to make the Californian government & it's [sic.] law branches aware that from today forward, we will be UNIFIED as minorities & we will no longer allow them to hunt us or be hunted by us !!! Let's erase the fear of one another on both sides & start something new here in the city of Los Angeles, a city we all love & share !
There are many things that have to be done to rectify this situation that has plagued us for hundreds of years & UNIFICATION is the 1st step !!! Again, I'm asking for ALL of my AFRICAN AMERICAN, MEXICAN AMERICAN & any other AMERICAN who has the heart to STAND WITH US to meet us at the above address & take the 1st step into altering our future for our children & our FAMILIES....I LOVE EVERY ONE OF YOU & WE OWE IT TO OURSELVES & OUR FAMILIES TO BE MEN & TAKE A STAND MY BROTHERS.. THE TIME IS NOW - The Game
Snoop Dogg told the Los Angeles Times that organizers were unaware that a graduation ceremony for police recruits was taking place at the headquarters at the time.
“The mission is to reintroduce our community to the LAPD... just to get some understanding and dialogue,” Snoop Dogg said. “We’re the ones they’re going to be dealing with, we’re the ones that are going to be pulled over. … We’re here on peace.”
.@SnoopDogg & @thegame at the H.U.N.T. gathering in LA - put on by the Game and his team in less than 24 hours!
The Game told reporters he was saddened by the deaths of the Dallas police officers, as well as the deaths of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota.
“I would be lying to you if I didn’t say I was saddened by what happened in Dallas," he said. "I would be lying to you if I didn’t say I was angered about what occurred in Minnesota and Louisiana and Fresno.
"The cops that died in Dallas weren’t the cops that shot and killed Philando or Alton," he added. "As much as Philando and Alton didn’t deserve that, those cops in Dallas didn’t deserve that. And the only thing I could think of was to initiate peace on both sides, so that’s why I’m here.”
The pair then held a meeting with L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti and LAPD Chief Charlie Beck.
Right here, right now: We are having the dialogue for peace in our city and our country. @thegame @SnoopDogg
An emotional Beck told reporters one of the reasons the group met with police was because "we want to stop [a repeat of the Dallas shootings] from happening here."
"Let’s try to save each other’s life before the world ends before our eyes," The Game said.
