When you turn on the news and are on social media you have probably seen noble things about Black Lives Matter and may have also seen corrupt things about Black Lives Matter, but the real question is who are they, what do they stand for, and are they as violent as the media portrays them to be? What started as a hashtag to end the oppression and killing of African-Americans has now turned into a vast movement that has activist all over the world calling to stop the problem of African-Americans being killed by police. Black Lives Matter is nothing more than a movement that wants to end the social injustices that African-Americans endure and to do that they go out and protest to try and get their point across but because of the news, social media, and people shouting, “Black Lives Matter” but violently protesting and starting riots, Black Lives Matter gets a debauched reputation for that and it isn’t their fault. Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi are probably names you have never heard of before, but they are the leading faces behind the Black Lives Matter movement. They started the Black Lives Matter movement after Trayvon Martin’s killer George Zimmerman was not acquitted for his actions in murdering Trayvon Martin. People used to believe that if you go to college and dress the right way, have a certain level of education, you would be spared,” said Erika Totten, the cofounder of the Washington, D.C., chapter of Black Lives Matter. “Now there’s a growing
Black Lives Matter is an international activist movement that started within the African-American communities. This movement is organized by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi. Ever since the black people have stepped on American soil, they have continued to be victims of racism and violence. From slavery to lynching to segregation, the black people have suffered alot in this country. In the past few years, there are so many of them that have been targeted by the law enforcement authorities across the country. This movement’s goal is to raise awareness of racism and violence against African-Americans. They wants African-American to live with dignity and respect like other Americans do.
Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi created a movement centered towards black Americans which later turned into Black Live Matter. Those three leaders came together in 2013 after the Trayvon Martin case that devastated the black community. Black Live Matter, also known as BLM, became an organization that has a mission to give power and a voice to violence inflicted on Black communities. So many black injustices went unnoticed and ignored, but this group will not stand to let that happen again. Injustice to the black community is what causes so many protests and movements that make the Black Lives Matter organization stronger than ever. .
In August 2014, a young Michael Brown was shot and killed by Darren Wilson. What is
The movement “Black Lives Matter” was founded officially in 2013, but began in 2012 with the trial of George Zimmerman allegedly murdering Trayvon Martin(Miller). The movement was founded by multiple people including: Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi(Miller). From its creation, Black Lives Matter has been involved in a series of protests which have frequently turned violent, and given the movement a poor reputation among US citizens. However, some of the uppers in the movement claim that the only way for people of America to really pay attention to their movement is to partake in civil disobedience(Green). With the movement having a side aimed at potentially harming others for attention or a spotlight from the media, the people within the movement appear to want this problem solved now for the harm to stop on both fronts. The people involved in the movement also state, “We’re going to curse at you. We’re going to throw some stuff at you. We might even tip over a police car or two, but you will not just come into our
Today in the United States of America, there are many different people from many different ethnic backgrounds. The Black Lives Matters movement is stirring up racial separation, rather than promoting reasonable solutions. Their dishonest anti-police views are causing police everywhere to second guess themselves.
For the past few years, racial tensions have been on the rise. Although many actions have been taken to prevent these conflicts from occurring, African Americans are still being undervalued by the state. As more African Americans are being turned away with little to no assistance from the American government, anger and the desire for change increased among them. When Trayvon Martin’s murderer George Zimmerman was acquitted for his crime, a great number of Americans were furious at the outcome. Three African American women named Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi expressed their view on a Facebook post titled “A Love Note to Black People” and it ends with “Our Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter” (“Black Lives Matter”). Thus, a new liberation movement for black people was born. The hashtag #BlackLivesMatter rapidly spread throughout social media, bringing awareness of the struggles of African Americans. The Black Lives Matter movement is a call to action to eradicate the dehumanization of African Americans that exists in American society. With the constant targeting of African Americans by the police and the unfair treatment in the criminal justice system, the Black Lives Matter movement is a necessity to combat racism.
As echoed in Bell Hooks’s We Real Cool: Black Men and Masculinity, the culprit to the Black Lives Matter (“BLM”) movement is masculine patriarchy which, in turn, reinforces racism and oppression. The general public fails to recognize that BLM stemmed from oppression to black males, not the black community as a whole. Furthermore, even though this movement is intended to fight anti-Black racism, it is focusing on the empowerment of black women.
The above narrative is just a mere glimpse of the hurt, anger, and pain in the black community after George Zimmerman was acquitted of charges of second degree murder against seventeen year old Trayvon Martin. These emotions were the stepping stones of a highly significant movement, the Black Lives Matter movement. The Black Lives Matter movement is a response as well as a stance against police brutality against African Americans, which uses the tragic deaths of teenagers Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown as a head for its cause. Many people on social media know the black lives matter movement or refer to it #blacklivesmatter, especially on twitter. The Black Lives Matter movement was founded by Patrisse Cullers, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garza. Which is defined as an “ideological and political intervention in a world where black lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. It is an affirmation of Black folks contributions to this society, our humanity, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression.”
Originating in 2012, the political movement known under the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter has exploded in size and renown. This movement, which was initially inspired after a police officer was acquitted of all charges after fatally shooting an African American individual, seeks to diminish police brutality against African American individuals and systemic racism particularly in the United States. Sweeping the nation, Black Lives Matter has become an international movement and its influence has only increased with time. On the movement’s official website, the following was written regarding the history of the hashtag-inspired entourage, “#BlackLivesMatter was created in 2012 after Trayvon Martin’s murderer, George Zimmerman, was acquitted for his crime, and dead 17-year old Trayvon was posthumously placed on trial for his own murder. Rooted in the experiences of Black people in this country who actively resist our dehumanization, #BlackLivesMatter is a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates our society. Black Lives Matter is a unique contribution that goes beyond extrajudicial killings of Black people by police and vigilantes.” (http://blacklivesmatter.com/about/). The #BlackLivesMatter movement asserts that racism is still prevalent in modern society and exists not only in passive forms. Instead, racism apparently can be both overt and implicit.
The black lives matter movement can be deliberated to be a new social movement as it looks at some of the actions which are grounded by policy making and the ideology as the root of collective action. A procedures that fits into this movement is the Collective Behaviour Theory. The theory refers to the events that emerge suddenly and don’t often conform to the laws or rules but as in alternative which is often base on the issues at hand. For instance the Black Lives Matter movement came together as a community as their collective identity matches one another. (Being African American or loosing someone to police violence) This also fits under ‘Grass-roots’ as it is driven by the ‘locals’ who are often
EVEN IN THE SPLINTERED AND OFTEN FRACTIOUS world of social justice movements, Black Lives Matter doesn't fit easily into existing categories. Few grassroots uprisings have done as much, in such a short period of time, to focus attention on long-neglected issues of racial justice, gender, and economic inequality. Yet so far, BLM has not followed up on its initial victories by building the kind of lasting, hierarchical organizations that grew out of the civil rights movement; nor has it dedicated itself to a single, easily identifiable goal, like enacting the Voting Rights Act. How are we to make sense of organizers who themselves remain so loosely organized? And if Black Lives Matter isn't devoting itself primarily to bringing about substantive legal and legislative change, then how can it hope to transform its resistance into lasting and meaningful gains in human rights?
In summation, we looked at social conflict as it related to class, race and ethnicity, gender, and how it explains the Black Lives Matter Movement. As we examined the literature, we asked how and why did the Black Lives Matter Movement begin? What are the problems with the Black Lives Matter Movement? What does social media have to say about the Black Lives Matter Movement? What is the youth’s culture’s input on the Black Lives Matter Movement? How does the Black Lives Matter movement tie back to the police? And where are we going with the Black Lives Matter Movement post-2016? We focused on whether or not the Black Lives Matter movement had the potential to affect change and have a long-lasting impact on society as a social movement. Therefore,
The Black Lives Matter Global Network is an international social movement that protest against violence and racism towards the black community. It has been working for the past four years to protect and end the discrimination against black people. The movement started on Twitter with #BlackLivesMatter on July 13,2013 after George Zimmerman fatally shot Trayvon Martin an unarmed African American teen, on February 26, 2012 in Sanford, Florida (Day ,2015). However, the Black Lives Matter movement didn’t become nationally recognized until Michael Brown and Eric Garner, both African American men were killed by police officers. The deaths of these two men in 2014, led to the protest and unrest in Ferguson and New York City (Wikipedia). Since then, the people involved in the Black Lives
The societal problem of hate crimes has many stakeholders not only opposing hate crimes but also supporting them. Of the many stakeholders opposing hate crimes, specifically those relating to a race-bias, Black Lives Matter is the most prominent one in the media. Black Lives Matter, which was founded on July 13, 2013, is an activist community that strives to end the world of “anti-Blackness, where every Black person has the social, economic, and political power to thrive” (What We Believe). The Black Lives Matter movement has recently been geared toward police brutality. Black Lives Matter believes that police intentionally treat blacks differently and see them more as a threat than other races. They believe that the police inflict violent behavior on blacks because of their skin color. The Black Lives Matter website says, “We are guided by the fact that all Black lives matter, regardless of actual or perceived sexual identity, gender identity, gender expression, economic status, ability, disability, religious beliefs or disbeliefs, immigration status, or location” (What We Believe).
The Black Lives Matter movement has been a very controversial topic over the past couple of years. Founded on July 13, 2013 the Black Lives Matter movement is an activist group that campaigns to end racism and violence towards African Americans. The movement was created after the very controversial death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. According to various news sources, on February 26, 2012 Trayvon Martin was leaving a convenience store after purchasing some items. He then proceeded to head back to the gated community where he was visiting relatives at the time. Upon entry George Zimmerman a 28-year-old man who was head of the neighborhood watch noticed him and called the authorities. Zimmerman was then told by the authorities that a patrol officer would soon be there and that he did not have to follow the suspect. Zimmerman proceeded to follow Martin anyway and ended up in a confrontation with him. As the patrol officer showed up to the scene he found Martin shot dead and Zimmerman with a bleeding nose. Martin was unarmed and Zimmerman claims he was only defending himself. Zimmerman was eventually charged for the murder of Martin, but was let off from the charges. The outcome of this event was not perceived well by the public and led to the creation of the Black Lives Matter movement. Ever since the creation of the movement it has tackled many other instances of injustice in the African American community such as police brutality. The movement has sometimes been portrayed to