Candace Payne, better known to the masses as Chewbacca Mom, has spoken out about the shooting deaths of five Dallas police officers last week. Payne became famous earlier this year after posting a Facebook video of herself wearing a Chewbacca Wookie mask and laughing hysterically. Payne took to Facebook again on Sunday to sing Michael Jackson's "Heal The World" as a response to the shooting in Dallas.
Payne lives in Grand Prairie, Texas, which is about a half an hour outside of Dallas where officers were shot during a demonstration against police brutality in the wake of the police officer killings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge and Philando Castile in St. Paul. The protest itself was peaceful, but a lone gunman opened fire, shooting and killing five officers, inuring an additional seven and two civilians.
Without mentioning Black Lives Matter, Sterling, or Castile, Payne said that she's "been so sad and so hurt by what's going on," and proceeded to play keyboard and sing the Michael Jackson song, saying it was important that someone "sing these lyrics again, and sing them over our world and just be a good reminder."
Chewbacca Mom seems to be doing a fair amount of public singing recently. Last Tuesday she sang the national anthem at Minute Maid Park to open the Astros vs. Mariners game:
Payne ended the video with the statement, "Make a better place, y'all. Fill it with joy, not hate. Come on." Payne's "Heal The World" video has been viewed 3.3 million times since she posted it to her Facebook page on Sunday.
