American society and the US government system have historically suffered from problems related to racial tension, social inequality, violence, and police brutality. Under such conditions, it is not surprising that people create various movements to fight for their rights and influence the change in the existing system. Therefore, Black Lives Matter (BLM) is often compared to the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. There are undoubtedly similarities between these movements since they are based on a call for social change and racial equality (Clayton, 2018). However, does this make Black Lives Matter a continuation of the civil rights movement, or are there fundamental differences in its organization?
The BLM movement was born in 2013 as a reaction to the justification of George Zimmerman, who shot an unarmed black teenager. BLM has focused its efforts on fighting and protesting against incidents of violence, discrimination against people of color, and racism. Unlike the Civil Rights movement, the BLM is a leaderless, horizontal organization that rejects the traditional patriarchal vertical model of organization (Biesecker, 2017). Some criticize BLM for such decentralization, but others see it as the strength and modernity of a movement where everyone can be active and express themselves (Biesecker, 2017). In addition, the goals of BLM are vaguer and less articulated because the movement brings together many different voices (Clayton, 2018). However, despite the differences, it is difficult to say that BLM is a fundamentally different initiative from the Civil Rights movement.
In my opinion, BLM is a postmodern continuation of the Civil Rights movement, which inherits the ideology, moral guidelines, and the use of non-violent strategies of struggle primarily. In today’s decentralized space, BLM responds to the new format of community organization. Initially, the movement arose on social networks under the hashtag, attracting like-minded people who have the opportunity to support and actively speak out. Nevertheless, BLM continues to fight for social and racial equality in the US, responding to the centuries-old demand of people for civil rights for all members of society.
References
Biesecker, B. A. (2017). From general history to philosophy: Black Lives Matter, late neoliberal molecular biopolitics, and rhetoric. Philosophy & Rhetoric, 50(4), 409-430. Web.
Clayton, D. M. (2018). Black lives matter and the civil rights movement: A comparative analysis of two social movements in the United States. Journal of Black Studies, 49(5), 448–480. Web.