Comparing Black Lives Matter with Other Social Movements
Black Lives Matter
A significant civil rights movement, Black Lives Matter, seeks to end systemic racism and police abuse of African Americans. It was born in reaction to the murders of numerous unarmed black males, including Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, and Michael Brown, among others (Jones, 2020). The movement aims to raise awareness of the discrimination that black people experience in both the criminal justice system and broader society.
Through advocacy and other types of activity, it strives to counter the disproportionate amounts of violence, prejudice, and marginalization that black people experience in American culture (Atkins, 2019). At the same time, several movements were born as a counterreaction to this phenomenon. Black Lives Matter differs from other movements, not minimizing or disregarding the value of the lives of individuals of other races, while not resorting to tokenism.
All Lives Matter
The All Lives Matter movement is a denial of the Black Lives Matter movement rather than a reaction to a particular societal issue. After George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, the argument between proponents of All Lives Matter and Black Lives Matter erupted once more. All Lives Matter is seen as a criticism of the Black Lives Matter movement by those who support it rather than as a call for inclusivity (Atkins, 2019).
However, proponents of this movement claim that the message behind their catchphrase is inclusiveness and color blindness. It makes the case that all lives are valuable and that defending the interests of one group causes exclusion and polarization. While the philosophy underlying All Lives Matter may appear well-intentioned, it conceals the reality of systematic racism. It fails to acknowledge the fact that black people experience police brutality and other kinds of racial injustice disproportionately more than other racial groups.
White Lives Matter
At the same time, white supremacist organizations and others have engaged in White Lives Matter to advance their racist goals. By making the case that the problems experienced by white people are equally relevant or deserving of attention, the White Lives Matter movement attempts to diminish or take focus away from the subject of Black Lives Matter. However, because it disregards the racism and oppression that have disproportionately harmed black people over the ages, this analogy is both false and possibly destructive (Atkins, 2019). Thus, whereas White Lives Matter is a term employed by people who want to uphold the existing quo of white supremacy and privilege, the Black Lives Matter movement is a response against systemic racism and injustice.
Blue Lives Matter
Blue Lives Matter has also been used to criticize the Black Lives Matter campaign. It argues that the lives of representing police officers are just as important as the lives of Black people to elevate the stature of law enforcement and bring attention to the risks of law enforcement (Keyes & Keyes, 2022). It successfully redirects the debate and detracts from attempts to tackle systemic racism and police brutality against black communities, even while it is necessary to acknowledge the risky and crucial job of police officers. Blue Lives Matter runs the risk of conflating the difficulties experienced by law enforcement officials who are protesting genuine police brutality and injustice with what is perceived as a program to address the valid concerns made by Black Lives Matter (Atkins, 2019). Despite this, one of the primary distinctions between these movements is that the latter is concerned with defending the profession’s interests, whilst the former is about the human rights of a disenfranchised group.
Ethnocentrism in Social Movements
Even though these movements are closely connected, and some of them were born as a counterreaction to Black Lives Matter, the issue of ethnocentrism is highly debatable in all instances. The movement is driven by the systematic racism and prejudice that Black people in the United States have experienced throughout history and continue to experience now (Jones, 2020). This movement seeks equality and human dignity for black people among other racial and ethnic groups in American culture, rather than being exclusive, ethnocentric, or isolationist.
It works to create a society that appreciates and embraces diversity, equality, and inclusion as a worldwide movement that strives to collaborate with other social justice groups. At the same time, White Lives Matter is frequently linked to individuals and organizations that hold the view that white people are superior to other racial groupings (Jones, 2020). This movement prioritizes the interests of white people over those of other races to advance a particularly white agenda, being explicitly ethnocentric.
Tokenism and Its Role in Contemporary Movements
Understanding Tokenism
Tokenism is vital in modern society and is widely utilized by many movements. It creates the impression of sexual or racial equality in the workforce by hiring a limited number of persons from underrepresented groups or by making solely formal or symbolic attempts to complete a specific job (Podoshen & Ekpo, 2021). In essence, this is retaining the authority and advantages of the dominant group while appearing to be diverse by utilizing a member of the minority group.
Far-Right Support for Public Figures and Tokenism
In the US, tokenism does play a significant role in the embrace with which the ultra-right views specific public figures like Ye or Candace Owens. Far-right groups occasionally use tokenism to refute statements of racism or bigotry by demonstrating support for members of marginalized groups who hold conservative or far-right views (Jones, 2020). However, these strategies only serve to reinforce and prolong existing power structures that advance the far-right political agenda rather than addressing the underlying causes of racism and discrimination (Podoshen & Ekpo, 2021).
Tokenism is also used as a means of disengaging from the real issues and difficulties that oppressed populations are dealing with. For example, organizations like White Lives Matter or All Lives Matter assert that their perspectives represent those of an entire race or ethnic group by focusing on the personality of a famous figure while neglecting the diversity of viewpoints and life experiences among persons of the same origin. This approach is used as a tool for organizations like White Lives Matter to acquire support and stray from their viewpoints on underprivileged individuals or communities.
Intersectionality and Alignment with Anti-Black, White Nationalist Sentiments
People of color who are subjected to different sorts of marginalization may, in some instances, turn to white nationalism as a method of escaping this oppression. However, this frequently arises from a poor comprehension of the connection between their identity and history, due to the numerous types of marginalization and discrimination that people of color experience; the connection may assist in explaining why some of them identify with white nationalism (Jones, 2020). Other characteristics, such as gender, sexuality, immigrant status, religion, or other parts of their identity, may worsen these problems. As a result, people like Candace Owens fail to understand that white nationalism is fundamentally hostile to their interests.
The focus on black people in the Black Lives Matter movement is driven by the unique history and current situation of systemic racism and discrimination that black people face in the United States. This movement is not exclusive, ethnocentric, or isolationist, but rather a call for justice and human dignity for black people among the racial and ethnic groups of American society. While tokenism is a tool that far-right groups can use to gain legitimacy, Black Lives Matter does not resort to such measures, adhering to different standards.
References
Atkins, A. (2019). Black lives matter, or all lives matter? Color blindness and epistemic injustice. Social Epistemology, 33(1), 1–22. Web.
Jones, L. K. (2020). #BlackLivesMatter: An analysis of the movement as social drama. Humanity & Society, 44(1), 92–110. Web.
Keyes, V. D., & Keyes, L. (2022). Dynamics of an American countermovement: Blue Lives Matter. Sociology Compass, 16(9), e13024. Web.
Podoshen, J. S., & Ekpo, A. E. (2021). Diversity, tokenism, and comic books: Crafting better strategies. Business Horizons, 64(1), 131-140. Web.