Blackout Tuesday sees Instagram users not posting in solidarity with Black Lives Matter

Instagram users across the world are posting black squares as part of Blackout Tuesday to show their support for Black Lives Matter.

The simple message is to show solidarity with those protesting in the USA following the death of George Floyd in police custody.

Once a person posts, they then commit to not putting anything else on social media for the remainder of the day, effectively boycotting various platforms.

• America on the brink as Donald Trump threatens to put army on the streets and end protests

• Fire and fury over death of George Floyd spread from Washington to LA

Originally, the movement was started by the music industry, where a number of stars committed their support by avoiding social media for a day in addition to not launching new music.

Now famous faces from numerous industries and even big brands have joined forces with the public to promote the anti-racism message globally.

Individual feeds are now full of the black squares, with the likes of England striker Marcus Rashford, Drake and Rihanna among those to publish black squares to their account.

Some have argued the use of the photos with the Black Lives Matter hashtag means important information is being lost, however, requesting instead that the hashtag is left off.

Queen guitarist Brian May, Radiohead, members of Little Mix, Mumford & Sons, Peter Gabriel, Natalie Imbruglia, Snow Patrol and The Charlatans were also among those taking part.

Organisers said they wanted Tuesday to be a “a day to disconnect from work and reconnect with our community” through “an urgent step of action to provoke accountability and change”.

At 11am, the ITV daytime This Morning show went dark, showing a black screen with the words Black Lives Matter in white lettering.

• Protesters besiege the White House as chaos sweeps Washington

• Thousands march across London protesting against George Floyd death

This Morning presenter Alison Hammond broke down in tears as she spoke about how the #BlackLivesMatter movement and the death of George Floyd had affected her.

She appeared after co-hosts Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield led a “blackout” in protest against the death of Mr Floyd.

Speaking over the phone, Hammond, whose parents are from Jamaica, said she was “disgusted to my core” by the image of Mr Floyd before his death.

She said: “I am a mother to black boys so when I saw that image of George Floyd I saw my brother, I saw my father, I saw my son.

“I saw everybody’s son, and I was disgusted to my core.

“It hurt me to the pit of my stomach to think that this is 2020 and we are seeing that.

“Let’s be honest. This has been going on for ever.”

Hammond also urged viewers to take part in the “blackout” and educate themselves about the Black Lives Matter movement.