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In 2013, three radical Black organizers — Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi — created a Black-centered political will and movement building project called #BlackLivesMatter. It was in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s murderer, George Zimmerman. The project is now a member-led global network of more than 40 chapters.
- Overview
- Early history: Trayvon Martin shooting
Black Lives Matter (BLM), international social movement, formed in the United States in 2013, dedicated to fighting racism and anti-Black violence, especially in the form of police brutality. The name Black Lives Matter signals condemnation of the unjust killings of Black people by police (Black people are far more likely to be killed by police in the United States than white people) and the demand that society value the lives and humanity of Black people as much as it values the lives and humanity of white people.
BLM activists have held large and influential protests in cities across the United States as well as internationally. A decentralized grassroots movement, Black Lives Matter is led by activists in local chapters who organize their own campaigns and programs. The chapters are affiliated with the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, a nonprofit civil rights organization that is active in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
BLM was cofounded in 2013 as an online movement (using the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on social media) by three Black community organizers—Patrisse Khan-Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi. They formed BLM after George Zimmerman, a man of German and Peruvian descent, was acquitted on charges stemming from his fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teenager, in Sanford, Florida, in February 2012. Zimmerman, a neighbourhood-watch volunteer, had seen Martin walking in his neighbourhood and called the police because he thought Martin looked “suspicious.” Although Zimmerman was told not to do anything, he followed Martin, got into an argument with him, and shot and killed him. When law enforcement arrived, Zimmerman claimed that he had been assaulted by Martin and fired in self-defense.
Zimmerman remained free for weeks, but, as the shooting gained national attention, demonstrations demanding his prosecution were held in cities across the United States. He was finally charged with second-degree murder and arrested in April 2012. At his trial more than a year later, Zimmerman claimed that he had acted in self-defense, citing a controversial Florida law known as “stand your ground.” His acquittal in July 2013 was widely perceived as a miscarriage of justice and led to further nationwide protests.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Nov 30, 2020 · Black Lives Matter founders: We fought to change history and we won. 29 November 2020. Black Lives Matter: The three women who founded a global movement. The year 2020 will be remembered for a lot ...
A Black Lives Matter die-in over rail tracks, protesting alleged police brutality in Saint Paul, Minnesota (September 20, 2015) Black Lives Matter ( BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement [1] [2] that seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and racial inequality experienced by black people and to promote anti-racism.
Nov 13, 2015 · Scholars in African-American history draw parallels with past movements. As a protest against violence toward African-Americans, Black Lives Matter burst onto the national scene just two years ago. But according to Harvard scholars, it is a movement that has historical roots that go back more than 300 years. “Violence against black lives ...
Nov 30, 2020 · "Black Lives Matter, after seven years, is now really in the DNA and the muscle memory of this country," said Garza. "We all have watched how our community members, our family members, are being ...
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