Nickelodeon Honors George Floyd In Blackout Tuesday Commercial; Defends Going Dark To Some Parents

Nickelodeon went off air today (June 2) for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, which was the same amount of time that a police officer had his knee on top of George Floyd‘s neck, that ultimately led to his tragic murder.

The network halted their regular programming to air the blacked out commercial, with George‘s words “I Can’t Breathe” over it.

After the moment, Nickelodeon posted a message on top of their iconic orange color, and it read “You have the right to be seen, heard, and respected as a citizen of the world. You have the right to a world that is peaceful. You have the right to be treated with equality, regardless of the color of your skin. You have the right to be protected from harm, injustice, and hatred. You have the right to an education that prepares you to run the world. You have the right to your opinions and feelings, even if others don’t agree with them.”

However, there were many parents who called out the network for airing what they did, claiming it scared their children. Nickelodeon is standing by its decision to air it, regardless.

“Unfortunately, some kids live in fear everyday,” the network responded to one woman on Instagram, whose comment has since been hidden as they’ve made another decision to turn off comments for the time being.

Many others have praised the network for airing what they did.

“Nickelodeon played this for 8min and 46sec. Those of you saying this scared your children are wrong. There’s far scarier things on TV (e.g., the news). Your problem with this is the fact that your kids are now asking questions you don’t want/know to answer,” one Twitter user wrote.

Another added, “Let’s be real Karen. You are not upset that #Nickelodeon scared your kid (far scarier shit on tv) you are upset your kid is now asking questions you are not equipped or comfortable answering. Imagine for a second the hard conversations black mothers have with their children.”

You can watch the video that Nickelodeon aired below:

Click inside to see the response from one parent that sparked the outrage and controversy…