Maliciously altered pictures of Bob Marley, Nelson Mandela, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were posted by the rock star on her Twitter page as a means of promoting her new album

The blogosphere went into a frenzy this afternoon as images of some very powerful personalities with what appears to be tape or wire wrapped around their heads ended up on Twitter newsfeeds as a part of Madonna’s promotion for her new Rebel Heart album.

The retweets and replies to the images spanned across both ends of the spectrum, with some sternly critical of defacing images of the deceased men who stood against all degrees of oppression in the name of freedom, justice ,and equality, while others supported Madonna and her “creative” freedom. Her alleged purpose was to compare herself to these great men by referring to Dr. King, Bob Marley, and Nelson Mandela as “rebel hearts”, which is, of course, the hashtag for the promotion of her 13th studio album.

Many people will ask, “Is this even legal?” or “How is she allowed to do this?” The First Amendment is a beautiful thing and many people are professionals at pushing it to the limit.

-Sha Be Allah(@KingPenStatus)