Significance of Black Lives Matter

Introduction

Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African American boy was murdered by George Zimmerman in Sandford, Florida in the year 2012 since Trayvon was merely apprehended for robbery. Zimmerman confronted the unarmed boy since he was volunteering the watch for the neighbourhood and that led to an altercation between the two, the tragic result of that was borne by the 17-year-old. Zimmerman escaped the charges of murder holding on the roots of Florida law but an outcry spread over his death ushering a new world where voices were raised against such anomaly leading to the uprise of the movement, Back Lives Matter. This movement advocates securing the basic rights of an individual born in a world of law willing to secure human dignity, freedom and liberty to live without harming the other.

The African -American community has been at the forefront of receiving violence propagated against them since they have been in an inferior position from the time their origins inhabited the lands of United State in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619 and were constrained into bondage. Their quest for liberation has been a continuous one but it seems the state over the past hundreds of years have been spun itself into a blind systematic racist social structure that fails to identify the need to owe reparations to black lives instead we see George Floyd on the roads, denied of his basic right to Breathe. Police brutality, Mass incrimination, violent deaths at the hands of oppressors have seen to become the order of the day. The death of George Floyd was a recent shake that the world felt recognizing that even after thousands of years, the story of Black people is still spun through the racial eyes, their lives remain undervalued and dehumanized. Fundamental prejudice with the flood of racial microaggressions help Blacks every day to remember their irrelevance and fortify White advantage. All through the greater part of the daunting struggle toward opportunity and balance, the subjective given that Whites were some way or another better than Blacks rooted largely in history, whether it has to oblige to the fact that the position of Blacks began by serving the whites, even though the abolishment of slavery took no prominence in securing their position back to as human beings.

This essay will look into the concept that became revolutionary and the constant struggle for the African American community and the injustice faced by them systematically from the death of Trayvon Martin to Michael Brown, Ferguson, Eric Garner, Rice and so many more but the nail in the coffin was pinned by the death of George Floyd. This essay shall also understand the meaning of Black Lives Matter, the distortions of the slogan and associated criticisms. The position of the privileged and the fear of polarization shall also be discussed with a reflection on the advent of police brutality in the history of America that systematically oppressed the Blacks. Along with that, the role of Judiciary and legislation shall also be thrown light upon and lastly addressing the global impact that this movement had.

Understanding Black Lives Matter: Oppressor v. Oppressed

The incident of Trayvor Martin had seen the beginning of the civil rights movement and protests held led by Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi. It was also posted on social media by Garza as a love note intended towards the lives of Black people which took by storm and people easily took to the chant Black Lives Matter on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms. The death of George Floyd had seen tangible impacts of the movements that ideally began in 2013 but May 2020 had seen the demonstrations to radically overpower the consciousness which was not limited to the territorial boundaries of America only but united the world at once. The most noteworthy addition to the Black lives movement is the visual power of social media that awakened every part of the world awakening the subdued spirit amongst people not essentially having a black origin but is seen to empower the movement by taking immediate action in bringing forth racist behaviours through the social media, more so, because discrimination on grounds of race, sex, class, caste etc. is highly common in all parts of the world and have been nesting the social structures so much so that it starts to normalise such discriminations.

The decentralised execution of leadership has also seen to set apart the movement which is very similar to the movements led during the civil rights era but has been incidental in carrying out the Black Lives Matter movement. Minorities all over the world have been fighting for their place for equal distribution of resources, facilities, and just to be able to have access to employment, education, necessities and merely the fundamental human rights but unfortunately, the fight is the same everywhere, just takes different shapes and colours.

The social structures are often designed in a way that imposes a sense of obligation and debt on the oppressed or minorities, that they spend their entire lives fighting to either repay the debt which should not exist in the first place and secondly, the continuous demand to be looked at through the human lens often dilutes the sheer reality that they already are human yet unfortunately the ropes of validation lie in the hands of the ones sitting on the rooftop of social hierarchy. The need to form a collective band to dismantle the myth and restore the justice dispensing mechanism by collectively challenging the limitations and the existential crisis the Black and other oppressed groups are forced to live in having no freedom to exercise their political or social rights. The death of George Floyd was yet another tragic shake that was probably needed to awaken the need to construct the movements further and wider.

The movement has taken a structural development through the establishment of an organization and the social media outreach of the platform advocating Black Lives Matter has been a monumental inclusion far different from earlier civil rights movement for the Blacks. Therefore, many resonated with the movement without having any structural involvement and many seem to have distorted the portrayal of the movement. The counter criticism had swayed over after the expression Black lives Matter gained precedence by embracing slogans like “All lives Matter” or “ Police Lives Matter” or “ Southern Lives Matter” which moved over from the core discussion of why the need of Black Lives Matter arose or people started to introspect this slogan as being exclusive of people in general which is baseless and bizarre since accepting to advocate and protest against the many black deaths that occurred at the hands of police over the years and the embedded anti-black violence that are perpetrated towards the African American community is evaded and the generic inclusion started being mouthed. The Black lives have faced degeneration from such a long time that the need to embrace the expression Black lives Matter arose which is a part of all lives and in no way dismisses the fact that All lives Matter. These counter slogans portray the systematic political pattern that shifts from the existential question and dilutes the intention behind the protests. Rickford mentions that the urge to revolutionize this protest is accelerated by the power of social media refraining to be part of political establishments rather have direct dialogue and this movement certainly does not seek to incite violent acts against other groups of people but purely forms to strengthen Black Lives against supremacist groups.

Relevance

The movement has garnered this massive support throughout mostly because it is relevant to all individuals on some level, secondly, the 21st century does not reserve space for systematic impunity, continuing police brutality and normalising latent racism. The need to acknowledge and bring forth the differences between different classes, races, sexes, gender orientation, sexual orientation and celebrating the need to be more tolerant, empathetic. Accepting and acknowledging the prevalence of white supremacy by the whites and understanding the need to eradicate the mindset that should have been dismissed 400 years ago is the ultimate goal of this movement. Upholding the rights of not only black people but also look beyond the gender binary that exists deeply rooted within our social construct by promoting and equalizing the position of Black trans genders who are still subjected to trans-antagonistic violence, by creating a network accepting of all kinds of black lives dismissing the cisgender superiority. The idea is to grow socially, psychologically and review the non-confirming actions and dismantle the structured discriminations by fostering liberation amongst communities refraining to practice ageism and the heteronormative assumptions against all people. This outlook in itself is extremely discriminatory and lies within us despite being for the movement of Black Lives Matter. Claiming Black Lives Matter is claiming All lives and All kinds of Lives matter.

Fear of polarization

Any protests led by a movement is generally a collective outburst of deep emotional turmoil, suppressed anger and passion that makes it possible to garner people in large numbers fighting for a cause. It is believed by many that this purpose can narrow the sight of the movement so much so that it fails to acknowledge any other point of view that may exist. Schneider had primarily asserted this definition but also distinguishes this from extremism. It would be naïve to say that the movements do get the support of many but are also critically subjected by many especially the ones attaining a more privileged sect of the society. The assertion is such that such movements may incite violence and aggravate the already aggravated instead taking assistance of political power and reaching the executive bodies may address the issue systematically but it's only true in theory. In reality, the constant abuse of state power is the sole reason of such civil rights movement, the fate of George Floyd was in the hands of state power which were misused and abused to an extent of taking one’s life. The entire African American community would have been saved and racism would have been lying in history but the biases are entrenched deep enough leading to mass incarceration governed by the biased legal system. Michelle Alexander has noted the biases regarding sentencing on drug charges are heavier on African American as opposed to white, getting subjected to arrested This is one such instance if the legislative framework is weighed differently, how can the Black community leave the power on to the officials elected to the lookout to secure their rights and exercise them judiciously.

History of Police brutality in America

The tension between the African American community and the police in the US has been in existence for the past 400 years. If we look into the methods executed by the police as against Eric Garner in 2014 or George Floyd in 2020, both the victims were arrested for crimes like stealing cigarettes or counterfeiting money leading them to scream "I can't breathe" before they took their last breath in police custody. The question may arise was there any need to choke Floyd for 8 minutes straight for such petty crime. It has been estimated that the blacks have a chance of being killed at the hands of police for about 2.5% more than whites and bears the risk of being prosecuted for petty crimes as well.

The Slave Patrols

This merciless abuse and in many cases lethal abuse of Blacks has been in practice from the time the ships of slavery landed in America enhancing the economic growth of the country. The need to control the population that came in numbers and have strict control to monitor the working of those people, the Slave patrols were introduced. The history of police brutality in America has taken shape through the origins of Slave Patrols who were considered the sole rood of law enforcement in charge of executing slavery laws by punishing enslaved population or conducting a strict search on their whereabouts, mostly empowered with laws that would enable them to act arbitrarily which was then deemed fit to control the enslaved population. Especially the passage of the Fugitive Slave Laws in 1793 was largely discriminatory of the Blacks to retain a sense of control over the slave workers.

The main object of exercising their force was not on accounts of crime but simple events of disorder. The minorities group consisting of the downtrodden African American community were already dethroned from the social hierarchical structure and considered to be a “dangerous underclass” therefore, they needed strict vigilantes to enforce stricter laws as opposed to the Whites. This mentality has been shaping up from the time but has remained in parts and pieces leading to such violent, evident discriminatory acts on the Black community. The segregation in between the African-American community from the White has been carried on and a latent practice of executing differential treatment whether dealing with them legally, socially or psychologically has been in practice. The possibility of such brutal conduct towards the Blacks on trivial crimes could be a result of such underlying distorted vision towards a system that is long dead yet the fragments still remain highly functional and deeply rooted. This community of minorities or the immigrants who were naturally poverty ridden, securing the lower class of the societal structure were constantly pinned to the ground, thus remaining vulnerable throughout. The police officials are often seen to take advantage of this existing mental state of vulnerability and fear restrict them from even confronting them.

The Jim Crow laws

The situation worsened for the Black community even after the civil war ended as the Black codes helped strengthen the segregation of whites from Blacks. The Jim Crow laws would have comprehensive control over the lives of Black community concerning their education, job, freedom to travel, restriction on the rights to vote etc. The state of the Black community had been in such a state from 1865 to 1968. The permanent state of fear cropped up amongst the community as they were to face heavy charges and strict punishment in case the Jim Crow laws were to be denied. The people were constantly under strict vigilance and lynched at any defaults. However, none of the police officials were ever held accountable in a way encouraging the practice of such treatment.

However, the essence of Black Lives Matter also reminds the world today of the need to upheld rue of law and adjudge cases equitably ensuring equal position of every individual before the law without discriminating their position, class, race etc. Thereafter, it is also a call against such police officials that executed Floyd and took charge in their own hands, from misusing their prerogative. The protests are a reminder of the violence perpetrated towards these racial minority and not to insinuate people towards violence. It also serves a s a reminder for a democratic country wherein the elected officials have the sworn duty to protect people from injustice and not propagate the same. Thus, the introduction of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act 2020 has laid down stricter measures to uproot the colonial and oppressive mindset by bringing about reforms and ensuring accountability of the police officials. The entire culture of 'Slave patrol' from the police department and training the minds to dismantle the age-old racial outlook and banning methods like choking, holding cartoids, prohibiting discriminatory profiling, the inclusion of body cameras, especially maintaining a registry by the name of National Police Misconduct Registry. The bill has made way for victims to recover damages if unnecessarily harassed and has no substantial evidence to deserve the violation of their constitutional rights. Finally the establishment of a separate body of department of Justice to carry on a thorough and detailed investigation in cases of such misconduct.

Black Lives Matter: Legislature and the Judiciary

There are many Civil Rights Movement that has occurred in American history raging with the cases like Brown v. Board of Education or Plessy v. Ferguson that have impacted the nation highly but the relevance of the Black Lives Matter has seen to be significant as reflected in the case of Klayman v. Obama but no separate space has been created in the legal field. The judiciary has failed to render justice in the cases of Michael Brown, Trayvon martin but has significantly worked intrusively in the case of George Floyd. The impact of this movement is seen in the incorporation of reforms that are reflect through of the bill of George Floyd Justice in policing act, 2020, a civil rights bill framed to combat the policing misconducts also reflects the importance received and seems to have shaken the core governing bodies to take a stand and look in the eye of such oppression.

Global Impact of the Black Lives Matter movement

The demonstrations of the movement may be visible in and around a few places in America but its affect has transcended borders of more than 60 countries. The European countries had also faced such racial discrimination as well as xenophobia which lasted for a long time. The exploitation of colonised people had a lot to do with the discrimination against enslaved people and immigrants that came post the World War -II period. Non-Governmental Organizations like " Police Kills" in France is evidence of the existence of ethnic and non-white minorities.The movement had garnered a lot of protest in European countries. People joined hands to dismantle the statue of Rhodes who was considered to be a white supremist, a sign of removal of the racial legacy that was left behind was mostly insinuated after the death of George Floyd which was restrained by prime Minister Boris Johnson though. This also brought back the horrors of King Leopold II in Belgium who was known to be a hero figure up until the death of George Floyd. European countries like France, Belgium, United Kingdom have home grown and brushed the evidences of racism under the carpet by suppressing the voices of minorities, colonised and non-white people. The practice of racism has been is not new but the movement was fired up after the death of George Floyd and this movement has been more significant than ever.

Conclusion

Our progressive, modern 21st century is still tied with the archaic social structures and conditions that is not only haunting but also addresses the incapable governing bodies, a failure of education and everything else that the world fights for if it fails to exhibit humanity and uphold human dignity. The rights of a human being are inalienable and in no way shall be compromised but the system of the world is such that it thrives, gains and grows by exhibiting superiority and drawing fat lines in between the rich and the poor, the white and the non-white and gender binaries. The significance of Black lives Movement is monumental and undoubtedly raised questions, voices and frowns amongst people. The fire that is ignited in the minds and hearts of people through the recent incidents of barbaric disposal of power shall not fizz out very soon.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Websites

• Edwards F., Lee H., Esposito M. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Academy of Sciences. 2020. Risk of being killed by police use-of-force in the U.S. by age, race/ethnicity, and sex. https://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1821204116">. Accessed on 15th January, 2021
• Hasset-Walker, Connie, The Conversation, 2020. “The history of police brutality goes back to the slave patrols in 1700s”, https://scroll.in/article/963417/the-history-of-police-brutality-in-the-us-goes-back-to-slave-patrols-of-the-1700s, accessed on 15th January, 2021.
• History.Com Editors, 2020. “Jim Crow laws”, https://www.history.com/topics/early-20th-century-us/jim-crow-laws, accessed on 15th January, 2020.
• Press release Washington, June, 2020, “House Judiciary Committee Passes George Floyd Justice In Policing Act,” https://nadler.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?Documentid=394331, accessed on 16th January, 2021.
• Garrett Chase, “THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE BLACK LIVES MATTER MOVEMENT, AND THE IMPLICATIONS THEREOF“, 18 NEV. L.J. 1091, CHASE – FINAL https://scholars.law.unlv.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?Article=1757&context=nlj, accessed on 16th January, 2021.
• Shaw, Kidwai, The Geopolitics, 2020. “The Global Impact of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) Movement” https://thegeopolitics.com/the-global-impact-of-the-black-lives-matter-movement, accessed on 15th January, 2021.

Cases

• Brown v. Bd. of Educ., 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
• Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896)
• Klayman v. Obama No. 14-5004 (D.C. Cir. 2015)
• State v. Zimmerman, No. 12-CF-1083-A (Fla. Cir. Ct. July 13, 2013)

Journals

• Garza, A. (2014). A herstory of the BlackLivesMatter movement. In J. Hobson (Ed.), Are all the women still white? (pp. 23-28). New York, NY: SUNY Press.
• HerStory, BLACK LIVES MATTER, https://blacklivesmatter.com/about/herstory">https://blacklivesmatter.com/about/herstory [https://perma.cc/A2JV-L2HY] Accessed on 15th January, 2021
• Rickford, R. (2015). Black Lives Matter: Toward a modern practice of mass struggle. New Labor Forum, 25, 34-42. doi:10.1177/1095796015620171
• Khan-Cullors, P. & Bandele Asha (2018). When they call you a terrorist: A Black Lives Matter memoir. New York, NY: St. Martin's Press
• Schneider, K. (2013). The polarized mind: Why it’s killing us and what we can do about it. Colorado Springs, CO: University Professors Press
• Alexander, M. (2010). The New Jim Crow: Mass incarnation in the age of colourblindness. New York, NY: New Press.
• Hoffman, Louis, et al. "An Existential-Humanistic Perspective on Black Lives Matter and Contemporary Protest Movements." Journal of Humanistic Psychology, vol. 56, no. 6, Nov. 2016, pp. 595–611, doi:10.1177/0022167816652273.
• Zinn, H. (2015). A people’s history of the United States (Kindle version). New York, NY: HarperCollins. (Original work published 1980)
• Feagin, J. R., & Sikes, M. P. (1994). Living with racism: The Black middle-class experience. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.
• Alvin B. Tillery, Jr., Associate Professor of Political Science and African American Studies (by courtesy), Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
• K. B. Turner, David Giacopassi & Margaret Vandiver (2006) Ignoring the Past: Coverage of Slavery and Slave Patrols in Criminal Justice Texts, Journal of Criminal Justice Education, 17:1, 181-195, DOI: 10.1080/10511250500335627