Piers Morgan Accuses Beyoncé Of ‘Playing The Race Card,’ Exploiting ‘Grieving Mothers’

Beyoncé is being accused of using the “race card” and exploiting “grieving mothers” to sell her latest visual album, Lemonade.

Piers Morgan made the controversial remarks about Beyoncé in a new piece written for The Daily Mail, where he accused the popstar of featuring the mothers of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown in her HBO special, Lemonade, in an attempt to sell her new album.

Speaking out about Beyoncé and Lemonade in the article published on April 25, Morgan admitted that he felt “uneasy” when watching Lesley McSpadden and Sybrina Fulton in Beyoncé’s short film, which aired on HBO on April 23, and blasted Beyoncé for “exploiting” the two women and their son’s deaths for her own gain.

“I have huge personal sympathy for both women and there is no doubt that African-Americans have been treated appallingly by certain rogue elements within the country’s police forces,” Piers wrote in his Daily Mail piece this week, “but I felt very uneasy watching these women being used in this way to sell an album. It smacks of shameless exploitation.”

In the Lemonade documentary, Brown’s mother could be seen crying and holding up a framed photo of her son, who was famously shot by a police officer in 2014, while Martin’s mother also teared-up while displaying a photo of her son, who was killed in 2012. Both cases sparked outrage and inspired serious talk about racism within various U.S. police forces.

Morgan then went on to describe Beyoncé as being a “militant activist” following her recent highlighting of race campaigns, like Black Lives Matter, and claimed that he feels Beyoncé is turning towards being controversial in an attempt to sell her music.

“The new Beyoncé wants to be seen as a black woman political activist first and foremost, entertainer and musician second,” Piers said.

Morgan then reflected on an interview he conducted with Beyoncé back in 2008 for CNN, before concluding his controversial Daily Mail piece by claiming that he “preferred the old Beyoncé” who he wrote did not have the “deeply political and race-fueled tone” that she does today.

“The less inflammatory, agitating one. The one who didn’t use grieving mothers to shift records and further fill her already massively enriched purse,” Piers continued. “The one who didn’t play the race card so deliberately and to my mind, unnecessarily. The one who wanted to be judged on her stupendous talent not her skin color, and wanted us all to do the same.”

Piers Morgan’s claims caused outrage with a slew of Beyoncé’s fans, who took to social media to blast the former Piers Morgan Live host and one-time America’s Got Talent judge over his outspoken comments.

“Piers Morgan is upset with Beyoncé because Lemonade is not about soothing male egos or cushioning the privilege patriarchy affords them,” @chelly_vee tweeted in response to Morgan’s article on April 25, while @RichieMcCormack wrote “Based on his Beyoncé hot take, Piers Morgan only likes a woman with something to say if her phone’s been tapped first.”

Twitter user @muh_clus_kee also blasted Morgan, claiming that he was oblivious to the racial tension and discussion that has arisen since his 2008 CNN interview with Beyoncé. “Piers Morgan seems oblivious to the rise of both #BlackLivesMatter and Donald Trump in the five years since he last interviewed Beyoncé,” the fan tweeted.

Others Twitter users slammed Morgan for even publishing an opinion piece regarding Beyoncé’s new music.

“Who has Piers Morgan thinking anyone wants to hear his opinion on Beyoncé??” @laurenxonika wrote on the 140-character site, and @Brohan_Cruyff wrote “imagine learning Beyoncé had released new music and thinking ‘hm, I wonder what Piers Morgan thinks of this.’ ”

What do you think of Piers Morgan’s claims that Beyoncé “exploited” Lesley McSpadden and Sybrina Fulton? Do you think she’s playing “the race card” by speaking up about race issues?

[Photos by Anthony Harvey, Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images]