BLACK LIVES MATTER- AN ESSAY.

This paper aims at not only elucidating the implications of Black Lives Matter (BLM) as an organization but also highlight the theoretical underpinnings, past notable events that helped shape it to what it is now as well as providing a meaningful scope with regards to the sway BLM has on our contemporary society.

Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a term used to refer to a black socialist movement birthed in 2013 with its major agenda being protesting against incidents of violence channelled on the premise of race. Its inception saw the widespread use of #BlackLivesMatter on various social media platforms. The emergence of this somewhat reformist movement is owed to the death of African American teen, Trayvon Martin who was fatally shot dead by a white police officer, George Zimmerman. The significant motivator however was the acquittal of the police who according to most if not all Americans, should have been susceptible to second degree murder charge.

Since its origin in July of 2013, BLM has undergone notable events that has moulded the organization into a more organized and solid movement. The death of Michael Brown, who was shot dead by Derek Wilson in 2014, for instance, spiralled the movement into adopting intense protesting strategies. Despite the grand jury being proffered with solid evidence by St. Louis county prosecutor, it decided not to indict William. In November the same year, a twelve year old African American, Tamir Rice, was fatally shot dead by a Cleveland police officer. These racially based violence spiralled out of control in the subsequent years and this prompted mass protests across the United States that saw many- some of White and Hispanic decent- take part in the nationwide protests.

In January 2016, hundreds of BLM protesters huddled on the streets of San Fransisco to match and protest against the death of Mario Woods (killed by San Fransisco police officers in December, 2, 2015). This match coincidentally took place on the night of the Superbowl. Additionally, between February and March of 2018, the Church of Richmond presented its second Annual Black Lives Matter Art Exhibition. This was done as part of the Church’s social justice focus. More recently, in 2020, the murder of George Floyd proved to be a major turning point for the socialist movement. More than four hundred and fifty protests were held across three continents as a result of his death. It became an embodiment of racial intolerance and as a result, BLM gained a significant backing from across all racial divides.

A closer inspection into BLM reveals what most already postulated might be the underpinning of the socialist movement. The Relative Deprivation Theory has it that, the denial of basic or essential human wants such as food, rights or even access to social amenities prompts those deprived to join socialist movements in order to better access these denied rights. This perspective almost perfectly fits the doctrines adopted by the BLM. Owing to denial of access to fair judgement and police treatment of the black minority, its clear why such a movement as BLM came into existence in the first place.

In the same vein, it is significant to note that Black Lives Matter can be categorized as both a resistance or reform movement. Resistance because the movement indulged in physical street protests to resist racially motivated violence. It can also be viewed as a reformist movement owing to the fact that it advocates for reforms particularly in the justice system that is endowed with systemic racism.

In a nutshell, the achievement of BLM can be termed as significant. The matter at hand has not been totally resolved but the progress is more steady than ever. As of July 20 2020, the strike for black lives, partly mobilised by the BLM, showcased a walkout of thousands of social and civil workers to reiterate on the awareness and eventual abolition of systemic racism. More significantly still, statistics evidence that more than 10,600 BLM related protests are going on in the United States as of August last year. This statistic has increased tremendously this year. The feat being achieved provides more hope for future liberation.

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Rojas, Fabio (June 20, 2020). “Moving beyond the rhetoric: a comment on Szetela’s critique of the Black Lives Matter movement”. Ethnic and Racial Studies. 43 (8): 1407–1413. doi:10.1080/01419870.2020.1718725. ISSN 0141-9870. S2CID 213636514.

“Definition of Black Lives Matter | Dictionary.com”. www.dictionary.com. Retrieved September 4, 2020.

Collins, Ben; Mak, Tim (August 15, 2015). “Who Really Runs #BlackLivesMatter?”. The Daily Beast. Retrieved December 18, 2016.

Leazenby, Lauren; Polk, Milan (September 3, 2020). “What you need to know about Black Lives Matter in 10 questions”. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 4, 2020.

Roberts, Frank (July 13, 2018). “How Black Lives Matter Changed the Way Americans Fight for Freedom”. American Civil Liberties Union. Retrieved June 15, 2020.

Day, Elizabeth (July 19, 2015). “#BlackLivesMatter: the birth of a new civil rights movement”. The Guardian. Retrieved December 18, 2016.

Luibrand, Shannon (August 7, 2015). “Black Lives Matter: How the events in Ferguson sparked a movement in America”. CBS News. Retrieved December 18, 2016

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