Whenever I hear someone proudly say #AllLivesMatter in an effort to defy #BlackLivesMatter, I can’t help but be utterly disgusted by how much ignorance someone can have to an entire demographic of humanity. It’s apparent that most people who support All Lives Matter don’t really know what Black Lives Matter is all about. People are commonly uneducated of the purpose behind the movement, yet somehow teach themselves that it implies black lives are more purposeful than anybody else’s.
#BlackLivesMatter is essentially an ideological movement against the systematic and intentional targeting of African Americans. It has also developed over time as a way to recognize the black community’s contributions to society, humanity, and resilience when faced with oppression.
After George Zimmerman was acquitted by a jury in 2013 for the murder of Trayvon Martin in 2012, the Black Lives Matter movement was created. It was created in order to fight against institutionalized discrimination, the mistreatment of an individual or group of individuals by society and its institutions. Its message has spread across the nation, the hashtag scribbled on posters of protesters flooding city streets. Recently, it has even emerged as a widely debated topic for candidates running in the 2016 Presidential Election.
Despite its purpose being surrounded by positive change, many people combat the movement by referring to the All Lives Matter. The reason they do this is because people believe that Black Lives Matter disregards all other lives that aren’t black as irrelevant. The problem with this is it actually promotes racism, and denies the racial injustice our country is facing. In reality, there are clearly flaws in our laws that suggest there is institutionalized racism, and has led to an epidemic intended to oppress African Americans.
Let’s get one thing straight: all lives do matter. Despite our various amount of differences in culture, race, religion, personality — all of our lives are valued equally. Black Lives Matter does not renounce that idea. In fact, one of the guiding principles of the movement is diversity, “committed to acknowledging, respecting and celebrating differences and commonalities.” People have the misconception that it puts black lives before any others, but it instead brings people’s attention to the specific matter regarding law enforcement and the U.S. Department of Justice purposely targeting the black community.
If you really think about it, the African American community has been in a state of repression since they were brought to the U.S. as slaves in the mid-1500s. The 13th Amendment abolished slavery in 1865, they weren’t able to vote until 1870 and Jim Crow laws continued to be enforced until 1965. Some people must not have checked their calendars lately, but it’s 2016. It frustrates me that, even at this day and age, there is still race-related discrimination in our judicial system and society.
For those who still chant “All Lives Matter,” and for those who still insist that racism isn’t a problem in America just “because we have a black president,” here are some statistics that may have you believe otherwise.
According to the NAACP, the US holds five percent of the world population and has 25% of world’s prisoners. African Americans consist of nearly one million of the 2.3 million people incarcerated, and they are also incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of whites.
In terms of law enforcement, U.S. police have killed roughly 1,186 people in 2015. Around 500 of those killed were white, and over 300 were black. This may seem to disprove racial injustice, but white people make up 70% of the country’s population, whereas blacks only make up less than 15% of the population. When the population and number of deaths by law enforcement are accounted for between each race, it is concluded that African Americans are 21 times more likely to be killed by cops than white men, according to ProPublica analysis.
People do not understand that when you say All Lives Matter to counter the Black Lives Matter, it is simply racist. It may sound obscure, but doing so implies that everyone is oppressed. Ultimately, it is distracting society and dismissing the issue of racial inequality — an issue that Black Lives Matter seeks to bring awareness and revolution to.
The statistics plainly reveal that there is and has been a clear problem with the African American community being oppressed, incarcerated and killed in this country by the same people who are supposed to serve and protect their citizens. If you don’t see the problem, you are a part of the problem.
