Madonna Defends Altered Photos Of Civil Rights Icons

Madonna is speaking out after getting slammed for sharing altered photos of civil rights leaders.

In a Facebook message posted Friday night, the pop star defended the images, which showed the faces of icons such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela and Bob Marley trussed with black rope. The alteration was made so that the pictures resembled the cover artwork for her new album “Rebel Heart,” which is due out in March.

The “Material Girl” singer responded to criticism that she was appropriating the images in order to promote her album, as well as making comparisons between herself and the historical figures of color.

"I'm sorry, Madonna wrote. “I'm not comparing myself to anyone. I'm admiring and acknowledging (their) Rebel Hearts.

“This is (neither) a crime or an insult or racist!” she added, citing the fact she also altered photos of Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe and artist Frida Kahlo.

“Am I saying I am them?” the star continued. “NO. I'm saying they are Rebel Hearts too.”

She also pointed that she didn’t create the photos, but reposted images created by her fans, who she said “aren’t racist either.”

“If they put me in the same category as these other people, thank you,” Madonna concluded her Facebook post. “I'm very flattered and I hope one day to live up to 1 100th of what those people accomplished."

She also took to Instagram to further clarify why she shared the altered images of iconic figures.

“When I repost these images (I) am saying YES!,” she captioned an altered photo of John Lennon.

“These people are all Rebel Hearts in one way or another from Martin Luther King to Jesus to Nelson Mandela to John Lennon. YES! Lets celebrate them! The world needs more people like them.”

Besides the controversy over the images, the upcoming release of “Rebel Heart” has also beset by Internet leaks, when several in-progress demos from the record were leaked online late last month. In response, Madonna released six songs from the album, only to have fourteen additional tracks leak a few weeks later.

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