"She should go back to being MIA" — Internet calls out rapper M.I.A. for explaining why she doesn't support the BLM movement

British-Sri Lankar rapper M.I.A. recently made the news for talking about why she doesn't support the BLM (Black Lives Matter) movement. As per the video posted on Instagram by Hollywood Unlocked, she took to social media on January 13, 2025, and during the live session, expressed her opinion on the topic.

“We are made in the likeness of God, which is not our body, which is not our skin tone, which is why I don't support BLM, because that always perpetually tells you, hey, it's about the skin tone, it's about all the suffering because of our skin tone…,” the rapper said

She further said:

“No, the spirit is the spirit and it's of God, and that is we are made in the image of God. Our spirit is made in the image of God…”

This isn’t the first time she has opened up about the movement. During an interview in the the London Evening Standard in April 22, 2016, MIA has criticized the Black Lives Matter movement, claiming that it is allegedly the only issue being discussed in the United States.

Nevertheless, once her recent video went viral, netizens took to the Instagram clip to express their opinion. The opinion mostly garnered backlash as one said that she should go back to being “MIA.” Even though that’s her name, the user here is likely making a pun which also means "Missing In Action."

Netizens reacted after M.I.A’s video went viral (Image via Instagram/@da_king_priam)

Others also said the same thing. One said that as she is neither black nor American, her opinion on the movement shouldn’t matter. Additionally, another user said that as people’s houses are on fire, no one cares about this right now, referring to the ongoing tragic Californian fire.

Netizens reacted after M.I.A’s video went viral (Image via Instagram/@shaaistafashionista, @marisgram_, @qbeautii)

On the other hand, some netizens defended her, with one user claiming that the movement didn’t do anything for actual Black Americans as it mostly generated money and took advantage of the movement.

Netizens reacted after M.I.A’s video went viral (Image via Instagram/@brilemagne, @the_great_encourager_ , @officialcraiglong45)

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M.I.A also spoke about the same nine years ago

M.I.A also criticized Beyonce and Lamar (Image via Getty Images)

Talking about the same, M.I.A., whose full name is Mathangi Arulpragasam, alleged that the movement focuses too much on the skin tone. Further explaining her point of view, she said:

“It is way beyond our colour of our skin, the sex and the gender and all of the bullsh*t, what f*cking postcode are there then, what my f*cking bank account says, all of that is secondary…”

The rapper then concluded:

“All of that is what my mind is capable of creating. The prisons I'm able to build around myself with my mind…”

This isn't the first time the rapper has accused the movement of being unfair. M.I.A. opened up about the same in the first half of 2016, even before George Floyd's death in 2020 prompted nationwide protests and allowed the growth of the BLM movement. During an interview with the same Evening Standard in April 2016, she said:

“It’s interesting that in America the problem you’re allowed to talk about is Black Lives Matter. It’s not a new thing to me – it’s what Lauryn Hill was saying in the 1990s, or Public Enemy in the 1980s.”

She then went on to criticize Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar for not speaking up when other races or countries were facing the same issues.

“Is Beyoncé or Kendrick Lamar going to say Muslim Lives Matter? Or Syrian Lives Matter?... That’s a more interesting question. And you cannot ask it on a song that’s on Apple, you cannot ask it on an American TV programme, you cannot create that tag on Twitter...,” the rapper continued.

Years later, talking about the same during an interview with political commentator Candace Owens in February, 2023, the rapper said that one cannot define things by race. She further stated during the same interview that if one person is being oppressed in one place and another person in another place, it's still oppression. So according to her, no one should choose a particular group of oppressed people and then decide to speak for them.

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The rapper has not publicly commented on the criticism she has received over the topic at the time of writing this article.