Beyoncé memorialised fan O’Shae Sibley, a professional dancer and choreographer who was killed in a suspected homophobic attack on Saturday.
“REST IN POWER O’SHAE SIBLEY,” she wrote in a website post made after news of the attack was reported on Monday.
Sibley and his friends were accosted by two men after voguing to Beyoncé music at a Brooklyn gas station around 11 pm, The New York Times reported.
Sibley, a gay Black man, allegedly confronted the men as they shouted homophobic slurs. One of the men stabbed Sibley, according to police.
One of Sibley’s friends tried to stop the bleeding, but the dancer was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Sibley, a sibling of 10, was 28 years old.
A spokesperson for the New York City Police Department told the Times the incident was being investigated by the department’s hate crime unit. Police said the suspect they are looking for is a man in his late teens but offered no further details.
Beyoncé has been a vocal supporter of her LGBTQ+ fan base through the years.
“To choose who you love is your human right. How you identify and see yourself is your human right,” the “Halo” singer said while accepting the Vanguard Award at the 2019 GLAAD Media Awards.
Last summer, she dedicated her album “Renaissance” to her late Uncle Jonny, who was gay, and other queer artists who inspired her music.
“A big thank you to my Uncle Jonny,” Beyoncé wrote in an open letter on her website. “He was my godmother and the first person to expose me to a lot of the music and culture that serve as inspiration for this album.”
“Thank you to all the pioneers who originate culture, to all of the fallen angels whose contributions have gone unrecognized for far too long,” she continued.