A Minnesota rapper is standing by social media posts that praised recent protests in France, which led to approximately 2,500 arrests over the weekend. Tufawon, whose legal name is Rafael Gonzalez Jr., used Facebook to encourage White people in the United States to “go outside and raise hell” after he and Greta Thunberg visited Lycée Paul Éluard, a high school in Saint-Denis where student demonstrations began earlier this month.
“Do I think way more people need to become radicalized here? Absolutely, especially white people, and that’s where I think we can take influence from the French,” the 40-year-old rapper wrote on Facebook. “All Power to the People! Go f— s— up white people. It’s your time.” In a separate post, he clarified that his calls for White Americans to “raise hell” regarding the Trump administration were intended to mean they should “take it to next level peacefully and legally.”
In a statement provided to The New York Post, Tufawon said his social media messages “fall under figurative speech and in no way, shape or form did I use them with the intent to incite violence of any kind.” Tufawon, who is part Native American, stated that his involvement in French protests last week was impromptu while he was on vacation. In one video, he was recorded chanting “f— ICE” and “ICE out” before performing his song “No One Is Illegal.”
The demonstrations in France initially began as student-led protests regarding education funding and classroom conditions but have since expanded into widespread unrest involving various political and ideological groups. Social media footage from Saturday and Sunday depicted groups destroying property in major French cities. A Fox News Digital investigation identified involvement from labor unions, communist organizations, environmental activists, and Islamic advocacy groups.
French authorities reported that over 2,500 people have been arrested in connection with the unrest, which has been fueled by issues including climate change and the cost of living. While hundreds of thousands participated in demonstrations on Saturday, violence and looting occurred in cities including Paris, Marseille, Lyon, and Bordeaux. In Marseille, the city hall was set on fire, and rioters have caused an estimated $1 billion in damages.
President Donald Trump addressed the potential for similar unrest in the U.S. on Tuesday, stating that federal law enforcement would treat potential rioters “very, very rough.” French officials are preparing a significant security deployment ahead of additional demonstrations planned for Saturday.
