One of the controversies facing the movement is the idea that it is a hate group. Hate groups, by Southern Poverty Law Center’s definition, are “those that vilify entire groups of people based on immutable characteristics such as race or ethnicity. Federal law takes a similar approach.” After what happened of the eight cop deaths in Dallas and Baton Rouge, people want Black Lives Matter to be named a hate group. The president of the SPLC notes that there are, in fact, black hate groups, yet Black Lives Matter does not fit into that extreme category. For instance, the New Black Panther Party have anti-semitic and anti-white views. In fact, the leader said that there are “no good crackers,” and that, if a “good” one were to be found, they should …show more content…
Why? All lives do matter, but why is it controversial in terms of Black Lives Matter? According to a Huffington Post article by white man John Halstead, “All Lives Matter is a response to Black Lives Matter.” He says that no one said ALM before BLM was being said, and since people are comfortable saying “Blue Lives Matter,” the trigger word must be “black.” Which instates the notion that the word “black” makes people uncomfortable, specifically white people. Halstead states, “Now some white people might say that singling out Black people’s lives as mattering somehow means that white lives don’t matter. Of course, that’s silly. If you went to a Breast Cancer Awareness event, you wouldn’t think that they were saying that other types of cancer don’t matter. And you’d be shocked if someone showed up with a sign saying ‘Colon Cancer Matters’ or chanting ‘All Cancer Patients Matter.’ So clearly, something else is prompting people to say ‘All Lives Matter’ in response to ‘Black Lives Matter.’” Halstead introduces the term “color blindness,” in which white people avoid the color of other’s skin. However, white people can be “color-blind” because white privilege allows them to ignore race in a society where “whiteness is the default.” Black people, however, cannot be “colorblind” because they are constantly …show more content…
It began as a result of George Zimmerman’s acquittal for the murder of Trayvon Martin in 2013. As a result, the movement has popularized and has accomplished much for the black community, yet they are still faced with many issues and controversies. Among the issues are police brutality, the act of cops over-exercising their force on suspects; and systematic or institutionalized racism, the ingraining racism into different aspects of a society, such as the court system. The controversies include the movement being coined a hate group for the police deaths that occurred in Baton Rouge and Dallas last year and the “movement” that sprouted as a response of Black Lives Matter, All Lives Matter. Despite the many issues that the movement must address and the controversies that plague the movement, the movement is still going on strong and has gained plenty support over the years as non-black people march in solidarity with the
According to Zimmerman, him and Martin had an altercation, where it led to Zimmerman shooting Martin in the chest, killing him. He claims it was self-defense. Photos and reports were leaked, which caused more and more people protesting to acquire Zimmerman getting charged for his actions. The end result led to a not guilty verdict in July, 2013. Due to this event, the “Black Lives Matter” movement started. Black Lives Matter movement, can be very complicated to define due to the misportrayal by the media and society. The Black Live Matter Movement, also known as the BLM, is defined as an international activist movement, originating in the African American community, the campaigns against violence and systemic racism towards black people
The Black Lives Matter Movement was started as a hash tag after the death of Travon Marten. Its founders Patrisse Cullors, Opal Tometi, and Alicia Garza helped it grow into a movement. Unlike the Black Panther Party of the 1960s this group is not calling for the black community to pick up arms. However, like the Black Panther Party of the 1960’s the media has shown members of this group standing toe to toe with
Black lives matter is a social media movement that went of the Ferguson, Gardner cases etc. Also very rapidly it was to show as a opposition to the police and cops. Somehow when saying black lives matter it was like saying all life matter don’t matter. It’s a touchy subject due to why people view things and for most case I can understand. I feel that the person that made black life’s matter didn’t mean for it to be just all about black life but to inform others around the nation that there is a special problem that is only happening in the African American community and we have fix that issue . we as a society has to recognize this that the African American are not making this up this its not something being politicalized its real and there’s a history behind it so we have to seriously.
Many years ago the KKK was labeled a Hate group for obvious reasons. Lately a new group, Black Lives Matter have emerged in our society creating the same threat and domestic terrorism as the KKK. -Michael Hamilton of Denver,
American is known for its rich culture and diversity. Black lives matter (BLM) is an international activist movement, originating in the African-American community, that campaigns against violence and systemic racism toward black people as defined by google. It was created in 2012 as a call to action for black people after seventeen year old Trayvon Martin was placed on trial for his own murder and the killer, George Zimmerman, was not held accountable for the crime that he had committed. It was a response for the anti-Black racism that still remains in our society and within the movement itself. It is a movement that goes beyond the killing of black people by police and vigilantes. It calls for the Black community to love each other, live
“Unarmed black men are 7 times more likely to die by police gunfire”. This would make a person who’s advocating for Black Lives Matter have a point to get upset about phrases like white lives matter or all lives matter. Race appears to forever become an element once it involves police brutality. When an African American is killed by a white police officer it almost always seems as if it gets additional attention than when a Caucasian is killed. “In 2012, 123 African Americans were shot dead by police gunfire” (Brander).
(Buchanan, Blue Lives Matter) Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the board among political self-education and a social identity crisis, the Black Lives Matter group is pushing for a civil rights movement and is hell bent on shaking the political pillars and releasing this country from its current cycle of violence and silence. (Sidner-Simon, The Rise of Black Lives Matter: Trying to break the cycle of violence and silence) Amid other routes, this plan has the possibility to take flight and soar, but the more likely solution will be that like its predecessors, it will most likely founder due to a government well versed in uprisings, and will leave is as a nation beaten black and
"This is not a moment, but a movement," (blacklivesmatter.com). Black Lives Matter is a multinational activist movement that began in the African-American communities of the United States of America. The Black Lives Matter Movement protests against the planned violence and racism that oppresses black communities across the United States of America and in other countries. Black Lives Matter started in 2012 after the state of chaos caused by the Trayvon Martin case.
“Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a movement against police violence that is, as argued by BLM supporters, disproportionately and systematically directed at black people. The movement has highlighted incidents in which police have harassed and killed black men and women. BLM is considered one of the most visible and controversial civil rights movement of the last decades.” (Black Lives Matter. 2016) “Black Lives Matter is an American social activist organization devoted to stopping violence and injustice against African Americans. The group was founded in 2013 following the acquittal of In the sixties African Americans began a Civil Rights Movement that, to some, still continue today; hence, the Black Lives Matter movement. During the sixties, the
In multiple different occurrences the protests have angered others more than just gain awareness. Sadly a large number of people are more upset with the stop of traffic and other inconveniences caused by the protests, rather than the deaths of unarmed black men and women. The protest are doing their job to gain attention, but in the eyes of some they are doing it in the wrong way. One big rally cry the movement has had is “hands up, don’t shoot” which came after the shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson Missouri. It was said that before he was killed he stated “my hands are up, don’t shoot me” which we find out afterward is not true. Anyways hands up don’t shoot, spread like wildfire and grabbed everyone’s attention. It was placed on the big stage, including sporting events, and areas of high traffic. Many common people support Black Lives Matter, but there may be some flaws in it as well. Clearly the main idea of the movement is good, and black lives really do matter. However would it not be safe to say that all lives matter rather than just black ones? It is true there have been many cases against African Americans and they may be targeted more often than other races. From another point of view, there would be riots in the
The statement “All Lives Matter” was brought into context because people believed that not one group should be the center of attention or signaled out in the United States was it comes to policy brutality. The statement is also used to stay away from the use of racism in these types of situations and focus on America’s people as unified or that not one person is different than the other. The Editorial Board from The New York Times states that “The Republican party and its acolytes in the news media are trying to demonize the protest movement that has sprung up in response to the all-too-common police killings of unarmed African-Americans across the country. The intent of the is to cast the phrase “Black Lives Matter” as an inflammatory or even hateful anti-white expression that has no legitimate place in a civil rights campaign”. Former Governor of Arkansas Mike Huckabee described the situation perfectly by saying “If Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were he alive today, he would be “appalled” by the movement’s focus on the skin color of the unarmed people who are disproportionately killed in encounters with the police. This argument betrays a disturbing indifference to or at best a profound ignorance of history in general and of the civil rights movement in particular.” As we all know
Black Lives Matter is an international activist movement, originating in the African American community. It campaigns against violence toward black people and has become a uniting call for an innovative chapter in the black freedom fight. The clearance of Trayvon Martin’s killer in 2013 and the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014 stimulated this movement. Black Lives Matter isn’t just about the loss of Black lives; but mainly about the lack of consequences when African American lives are taken by Caucasian officers. The question is; do black lives truly matter to those that claim to protect it? The answer is no they do not because the movement’s alleged “peaceful” protests continuously
Overall, many believe that the undeviating war on racism in today’s society is fueled by police brutality and anti-police violence. Specifically, the Black Lives Matter movement, which is the source of controversy regarding these topics. To summarize, this campaign is “both a hashtag and a political project that formed after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin.” (Miller). Later in the article Chelsea Fuller, senior communications associate at The Advancement Project, a multi-racial civil rights organization, states “The Black Lives Matter movement is to deal with anti-black racism, to “push for black people’s right to live with dignity and respect” and be included in the American democracy that they helped create” (Miller).
Why do Black Lives Matter as opposed to All Lives Matter? When a person thinks about Black Lives Matter, he or she may visualize African Americans fighting for justice and equality. The movement Black Lives Matter was created to bring awareness to the systematic racism, police brutality and social injustice that African Americans face on a daily basis. In contrast, All Lives Matter downplays the fact that black people are looked down upon in society. All Lives Matter may seem like an innocent title, but it emphasizes that justice for black people is not necessary.
One of the most prominent grassroots movements currently at work in the United States is, undoubtedly, the Black Lives Matter movement. A multifaceted reform movement, it tackles the issue of institutionalized racism against black people in the United States. The movement began as a hashtag on Twitter in 2013 in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the Treyvon Martin case. Zimmerman shot Martin to death, claiming it was in self defense as he felt the young man looked threatening because it was dark and he was wearing a hoodie. He was acquitted of both manslaughter and second degree murder. Activists felt that this case was an extreme example of how little value black lives seem to have to the greater community. How could a young, unarmed black person get shot and killed while the white person who shot him simply gets to walk away? This all started as an anti-racist