What Is Black Lives Matter (BLM)?
Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a decentralized social and political movement that protests against instances of racially motivated crime and police brutality targeted at people of color. In the context of the systematic inequality between races that have existed in society for centuries, BLM advocates for equality of treatment and opportunity. Therefore, BLM has been vocal about the mistreatment and inequality that persists in US society and worldwide and engaged in working with victims of racially motivated violence and abuse.
The Work of the BLM Movement
The Black Lives Matter movement’s work is concentrated on its mission of eradicating white supremacy and building local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes” (“About Black Lives Matter”). Founded in 2013 by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi, BLM combats and counters acts of violence against Black people work on creating innovative and creative spaces for Black development and engages in protests for the rights of Black people in the light of recent police brutality cases and instances of Black people being shot by police officers. In 2020 alone, between 15 to 26 million Americans participated in BLM protests (Buchanan et al.).
Systematic Inequality
When comparing the level of wages, unemployment, and household wealth of white and black people, the difference is enormous. In 2019, the wealth of white households was 17 times greater than that of black families (Herbig 245). All these imbalances exist, and as early as the 1970s, the biological rationale for the race was discarded (Herbig 246). It means that there is no reason to say that because people have such a skin color, they are more intelligent.
The differences that have been mentioned are maintained socially and economically since wealth and power are concentrated in the hands of white people. In recent years, fortunately, there have been changes, but this is still not enough. Considering the film industry, white people dominate as actors, directors, and characters of the films themselves in this area. The whole culture patterns and representations are designed so that people with white skin make decisions, they are more successful, educated, and all supported and reproducible. The Black Lives Matter movement can help bridge this cultural divide.
Why the BLM Movement Is Important?
The BLM movement is important because the instances of brutality or Black people’s mistreatment have not ended, with new cases emerging every month. Therefore, there is a need for an ongoing and open dialogue to engage more supporters of the movement. Such dialogue encourages law enforcement to get education on racial bias and take accountability. Even though the history of inequality takes a toll on society, only systematic and organized efforts aimed at improvement can help. The critics have stated that all lives matter and not just Blacks’, but the movement emphasizes a specific issue that affects the African-American community that is not prevalent in others.
Works Cited
“About Black Lives Matter.” Blacklivesmatter, Web.
Buchanan, Larry, et al. “Black Lives Matter May Be the Largest Movement in U.S. History.” The New York Times, 2020.
Herbig, Art. “Understanding Privilege in a Pandemic: The Small Systems that Perpetuate the Large Structures.” Journal of Autoethnography, vol. 2, no. 2, 2021, pp. 242-247.