His plea has apparently shaken this usually sanitized environment, prompting several of its actors to speak publicly. Lewis Hamilton loudly denounced the silence of the "biggest stars" in the world of Formula 1, of which he himself is one of the most eminent figures, after the death of George Floyd in the United States.
"Nobody moves a finger in my sport which is of course dominated by white people, protested the British pilot in a post published on Instagram on the night of Sunday to Monday. I am one of the only people of color there, I am still alone. "
"Some of you are among the biggest stars and yet you remain silent in the face of injustice," also writes the Mercedes driver on the death, on May 25, of the 46-year-old black man during an arrest. in Minneapolis (Minnesota).
"I thought you would now see why this is happening and react, but you cannot stand by our side. Just know that I know who you are and that I see you, ”said Hamilton.
The reigning world champion says he supports only peaceful protesters. He added, however, that "there can be no peace as long as our so-called leaders do not initiate change, not only in America, but in the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy and everywhere else".
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VIDEO. They kneel before the US Embassy in Paris
The direct attack of the six-time world champion, champion of environmental protection and notoriously vegan since 2017, caused many reactions in the middle of the race, starting with that of his own Mercedes team. "We are with you Lewis, tolerance is one of the basic principles of our team," replied the German team on Instagram.
Ricciardo, Sainz and Leclerc react
Daniel Ricciardo, the Australian driver of Renault, was more direct by affirming on Instagram also: "Racism is toxic and it must be tackled not by violence and silence but by unity and action. We are in 2020, shit, the lives of blacks count. ”
Monegasque Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc conceded that Hamilton's statements had prompted him to react. "To be completely honest, I did not feel at home and uncomfortable sharing my thoughts on social media. But I was completely wrong, ”he regrets on Twitter.
#BLACKLIVESMATTER
To be completly honest, I felt out of place and uncomfortable sharing my thoughts on social media about the whole situation and this is why I haven't express myself earlier than today.
And I was completely wrong. 1/3
A point of view also shared by George Russell (Williams) and Alex Albon (Red Bull) whose mother is Thai. Canada's Nicholas Latifi (Williams) also joined voices on Monday condemning the death of George Floyd and acts of racism while Briton Lando Norris (McLaren) acknowledged that his popularity on social media gave him a special role in stand to "defend what is right".
"We work together in harmony"
The Spanish driver Carlos Sainz, who will pass next year from McLaren to Ferrari, for his part seemed to want to reframe part of the words of the defending champion, while agreeing with him on the merits. "It's crazy to think about what's going on now, we all have the same blood," he wrote first.
And to add: “Regarding our environment, we are a global sport with employees and fans from all over the world and from different backgrounds, with different religions and skin colors. We work together in harmony to entertain the whole world and spread a message of fair play and unity. A esprit de corps that Hamilton didn't seem to describe frankly about the world of F1. At least before this surge of united reactions.
