Black Lives Matter (the other three magical words)

Originally posted: 29th October 2020

The Origin

When I thought of writing this article, I thought that experiencing the fatal conditions in America from an outsider perspective made me objectively socially aware. What I didn’t realise, however, was how terribly misinformed I was. This epiphany was the driving force behind this article; educating society while educating myself about the names of the dead in the name of the living. No matter which list I make of the names of those deceased, it will be far from complete. Any such list will be short by hundreds of names that are salient evidence of violence against black people in the USA.

Trayvon Martin

The story of a movement that seeks to redeem a long history of oppression can be first linked to Martin. On 26 February, 2012, Martin, donning a hoodie, was walking with a soft drink and candy through the streets of a community in Sanford, Florida. A neighbourhood watch volunteer, George Zimmerman, called the police because he deemed Martin ‘suspicious’ although his only crime was walking while black. Zimmerman was told by the 911 operator to stand down and keep his distance but Zimmerman initiated a conflict which resulted in a tussle that led to him shooting a seventeen-year-old Martin dead. Although Martin was younger, smaller and most importantly, unarmed; the fact that he was a black, hoodie-clad teenager walking through a neighbourhood other than his own was enough justification for him being suspect-worthy. Despite this, Zimmerman was found not guilty on all charges relating to Martin’s death in 2013.

The BLM Movement

This was when Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi made history by creating the #BlackLivesMatter movement. Thus, it was the death and failure of the Justice system of America (one that put a teenager on trial for his own murder) that prompted three black women to offer three words to America and the rest of the world: black lives matter. Today, almost 8 years after the movement being officially coined as such, #BlackLivesMatter represents an ideal that motivates, mobilises and informs a lot of actions that local branches take. #BlackLivesMatter has in a sense become a brand for those who wish to speak out or act on racial injustice in any context. The fact that these three words came into political existence through a tragic loss and such turmoil gives them a certain power. These words are the touchstone for our lives as we see them today. These words represent the struggle that advocated that black lives are not an invitation for hateful or negligible elimination. These words represent that black lives, indeed, matter.

For more information: https://www.amnesty.org/.../usa-law-enforcement-violated.../