- Susan Sarandon was criticized for a tweet on February 1, questioning police levels in New York City.
- She reshared a tweet that compared a funeral procession for a deceased NYPD officer to “fascism.”
- A representative for Sarandon didn’t immediately reply to Insider’s request for comment.
Susan Sarandon is facing backlash from the police after sharing an image on Twitter that compared a funeral procession for deceased NYPD officer Jason Rivera to “fascism.”
The tweet from Sarandon, posted on February 1, featured a screenshot of a January 29 tweet from independent journalist Danny Haiphong, which contained an image of a police procession in New York City, including a parade of officers, police cars, and motorbikes lit in red and blue.
The caption on Haiphong’s original tweet, which was still up at the time of writing, reads, “I’m gonna tell my kids this is what fascism looks like.”
Sarandon, who has tweeted before about being in favor of defunding the police, reposted Haiphong’s tweet, along with an image-overlay caption that reads, “So, if all these cops weren’t needed for CRIME that day, doesn’t that mean they aren’t needed ANY day?” The image also included a hashtag that read #abolishthepolice.
It’s unclear if Sarandon herself added both the hashtag and additional text overlaying Haiphong’s tweet. The image in the tweet appears to be a screenshot of an Instagram story, although it’s also unclear if it was originally posted on Sarandon’s Instagram account.
—Susan Sarandon (@SusanSarandon) February 1, 2022
Fox News reported that the procession depicted in Haiphong’s original tweet was to pay respects to deceased NYPD Detective Jason Rivera. As Insider previously reported, Rivera, 22, was shot dead on January 21 while responding to a call about a family dispute in Harlem. Another officer, Wilbert Mora, 27, was critically injured during the shooting and later died, the New York Times reported.
According to the New York Times, thousands of police officers gathered on January 28 at St. Patrick’s Cathedral to honor Rivera. The funeral also drew officers from outside of New York City from locations, including New Hampshire, Virginia, and the United Arab Emirates, per the Times.
Sarandon’s tweet drew criticism on Twitter, including from several police unions, like the Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York, which is the largest police union representing NYPD officers.
The organization’s official Twitter account wrote in a tweet that Sarandon was “mocking heroes & making light of the crisis that cops are battling alongside our communities.”
The National Fraternal Order of Police, the largest police union in the United States, also condemned Sarandon’s post, writing on Twitter, “Of all the days for @SusanSarandon to share her true feelings towards police, she picks the day we bury our fallen brother to make such inflammatory & brainless comments.”
—National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) (@GLFOP) February 3, 2022
Other celebrities have spoken out in favor of defunding the police, particularly in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in May 2020. In June of that year, celebrities including Lizzo, John Legend, Jane Fonda, Taraji P. Henson, Natalie Portman, and The Weeknd signed an open letter from The Movement for Black Lives urging state and local governments to defund the police in favor of diverting funds towards neighborhood infrastructure, childcare, education, and other causes to “support a vibrant Black future,” Insider previously reported.
A representative for Sarandon did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment. Haiphong also did not immediately respond to a message from Insider requesting a comment.