In the past few years, Black Lives Matter has grown from a simple Facebook hashtag to one of the worlds most powerful and provocative activist groups. Their mission to shed light on the extrajudicial killings of African Americans has, especially in 2020, gained immense mainstream media popularity. This past Tuesday; I had the opportunity to sit down for a Zoom webinar run by New York University, with Opal Tometi, one of three BLM cofounders.
Initially I was skeptical about what I would hear in this webinar. As someone with more conservative beliefs, BLM has always seemed to me like an organization hell bent on the destruction of the American system to me. In recent months I have spent many hours infont of the tv watching riots and violence with BLM being blamed as the main culprit. My skepticism also stemmed from my personal experiences. Growing up in a very urban and diverse area, I had never seen BLM personally help any of my black friends. I saw the organization more as a front. As I would always tell my friends, “I support black lives matter the sentiment, not the organization”. But after hearing Tometi’s very impressive speech this past week, I myself have come full circle in my attitudes towards the movement.
Tometi began her speech talking about her upbringing in Arizona. According to her, Arizona is one of the most racist and xenophobic areas of the entire country. There are many laws to deter and deport “illegal” immigrants, and the state is only 4% African American. Growing up in this environment, Tometi knew it was her destiny to help create a more racially sensitive and accepting world.
Tometi’s activist journey began with the killing of Traevon Martin. The wrongful killing of Martin spread outrage throughout the black community worldwide. In response to this tragic event, Tometi started #blacklivesmatter on Facebook. The hashtag trended and from that a movement was born. In 2014 following the killing of Mike Brown in Ferguson Missouri, BLM began to gather for protest. Tometi and her colleagues began organizing massive protests for racial justice in Ferguson, as well as nationally.
Fast forward to the modern day, BLM has millions of social media followers, chapters in almost every state, and has worldwide notoriety. With such a large organization, it can be easy to lose track of the message. This was one thing Tometi laid to rest in her speech. BLM is not an anarchist group, or front for democrat super PACS, but is a groups dedicated to creating a more equal and just world for African Americans. They are a group that seeks to uphold the values of the American judicial system for people of all races.
As one may expect, there are near equally as many people who stand in opposition to BLM. But in both my and Tometi’s opinion, most of these people are simply misinformed. Tometi spoke about how the mainstream media on both the left and right has shaped BLM’s message to fit their narrative. I believe that this is an organization that everyone should support as we strive for a more racially just world.
Hello Tyler! Like you, I attended this webinar as well and have the same feelings as you do regarding my own views of black lives matter prior to the webinar. As a black woman, I am often skeptical in movements like this because they only seem to center around the deaths of black cis gendered men and not woman (until Breonna Taylors tragic murder) or even members of the LGBT community. I liked how you had an open mind and listened to Opal, she made some very good points on the misconceptions of BLM and did it in a very eloquent way she did a good job in debunking the rumors and misconceptions about the organization and I respect her for that. I too agree that those who still disagree with the basis of BLM are out of touch and misinformed, and hope that the group continues to do great things
Hi Tyler! I found this article very interesting. I appreciate you noting that doing some research changed your perspectives in a way, because there are plenty of conservatives unwilling to pay mind to opposing point of views. I personally have more Democratic views, but can understand why you may have been skeptical of the circumstances, given how much misinformation is provided on the news today. Taking a step back and trying to understand the situation as a whole is very important and valuable, no matter where a person sides politically. I liked that you included the details on the awakening of the BLM movement, and how it has grown to what it is today. I agree that this is an organization trying to spread awareness for equality, and it should be supported for that reason. However, that base message is often blurred by the violence we see on the news. How do you think that we can encourage more right winged people to have an open mind in the way you did? Do you think that educational responsibility falls on the BLM movement itself or the people who oppose it?
Great work!!