Jesse Williams has no issue confronting hard-to-discuss topics head on. In fact, the Grey’s Anatomy actor prefers it. In a new EPIX series, America Divided the 35-year-old actor travels to Pinellas County, Florida to ask one officer about the grossly disproportionate arrest of black school children.
“Pinellas is third in the state in disproportionately arresting black children,” Williams explains. “Three times as many students are arrested for disorderly conduct in Pinellas, than in Miami, and Miami has three times the amount of students. That’s pretty alarming.”
Williams has the frank discussion with a stoic officer Mike Hawkins, and also asks why they’re aren’t more officers of color on the force in Williams’ hometown.
Williams, an actor and activist, has risen to fame not only for his work on the Shonda Rhimes scripted show, but also for his work off the screen. At the 2016 BET Awards, Williams earned praise and condemnation from many for his powerful speech upon winning the evenings’ Humanitarian Award. Many even took to Twitter demanding Rhimes fire Williams from the show.
Watch the video below.
https://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1250536613001/?bctid=5147500420001