In February 2012, Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old, was involved in a tragic incident that left the United States feeling disturbed and confused.
In response to the high crime rate in Sanford, Florida where Martin lived, a neighborhood watch was established. Zimmerman, who had a firearm license, regularly monitored the neighborhood and was on duty when Trayvon Martin died. According to Greg Botelho from CNN, Zimmerman followed Martin after he left his house at night to go to 7-Eleven. Despite being told by law enforcement not to chase the teenager, Zimmerman ignored their instructions. As Martin headed back home, he realized that he was being pursued and ran intermittently. In the end, Zimmerman shot him in the chest which caused his demise.
Zimmerman asserted self-defense, however, investigations and security footage revealed no evidence of Trayvon Martin engaging in threatening behavior. Nevertheless, there is a widespre
...ad belief that Zimmerman racially profiled Martin, which ultimately led to him being targeted (Botelho 2012). Subsequently, Zimmerman was arrested but later acquitted of all charges on July 13, 2013. As a result, activists emerged with the objective of pursuing justice and instigating change. Presently, the prominent movement addressing racial injustices is "Black Lives Matter," which strives to combat persistent racial disparities within the United States.
The Black Lives Matter Movement, established in 2013, seeks to tackle systemic racism and the deliberate endangerment of Black lives. It originated as a reaction to George Zimmerman's acquittal but has evolved into an ideological and political intervention. As per the official website, it serves as a call for all Black lives striving for liberation (Carney 180-199). The movement's objectives include raising awareness, promoting solidarity, and eradicating intentional violence
perpetrated by the state (Herstory 2014).
Systemic racism refers to the existence of deeply ingrained racist realities in various aspects of society, including individual, institutional, and structural forms of racism in the United States (Cole 2018).
Partition
The Black Lives Matter Movement, established in 2013, aims to raise awareness about systemic racism targeting African Americans in the United States. It also strives to promote collective struggles within the black community and end government-inflicted violence against African Americans. Assessing progress towards these objectives is essential for measuring overall movement success.
The Black Lives Matter Movement has succeeded in raising awareness about systemic racism and promoting collective action through organized protests. Furthermore, there has been a decline in the number of African Americans killed by law enforcement in recent years in the United States, although specific statistics may vary. Therefore, considering these factors, it can be concluded that the movement has achieved its primary objectives and can be deemed a successful endeavor.
The Black Lives Matter Movement has faced criticism for not being able to reduce the number of African Americans killed by police enforcement in the United States. However, it is important to acknowledge and address this opposing viewpoint.
Confirmation
After the tragic death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, a new aspect of the Black Lives Matter Movement emerged. Activists organized the Black Life Matters Ride as a protest against police brutality, enduring tear gas and pepper spray daily during their fifteen-day stand in Ferguson. Following the protest's conclusion, eighteen individuals established local chapters of Black Lives Matter in their respective cities, resulting in over thirty chapters across the United States.
The cause of #BlackLivesMatter grows through its attention on social media platform
Twitter (Herstory 2014). After Michael Brown's death, the hashtag trended worldwide, spreading awareness to a global audience. Celebrities and athletes joined in on Twitter to publicly express their support, playing a crucial role as visible supporters of the movement.
LeBron James, who is arguably the most recognizable athlete, often chose to remain silent during interviews. However, he found a way to express his opinions by utilizing Twitter and tweeting specific hashtags (Cassilo 427). From July 18, 2016, to May 1, 2018, an average of 15,856 times per day on Twitter was the #BlackLivesMatter hashtag used. These tweets typically discussed various topics such as fatal encounters with police, acts of violence in general, law enforcement and police matters, national politicians and parties, race-related issues or protests (Anderson 2018). The relevance of this hashtag has remained constant over the course of five years which serves as evidence for its continuous ability to raise public awareness.
The Black Lives Matter Movement has achieved success by establishing branches across the country and gaining extensive coverage on social media, effectively bringing attention to the systemic racism experienced by African Americans in the United States. Additionally, through organizing peaceful protests nationwide, the movement has successfully accomplished its objective of promoting unity among African Americans. This viewpoint is supported by a professor at Dr. University of Kent.
In 2017, Richard Norman wrote an article on the importance of protests. Norman highlights how protests spark discussions and bring attention to possible problems, with the ultimate goal of creating change. Furthermore, he recognizes that participating in protests creates a sense of unity among individuals, as they come to realize they are not alone (Norman, 2012).
Dr. Norman's statement
receives my complete endorsement as it emphasizes the significance of solidarity among protesters, providing reassurance and hope in their endeavors to tackle ongoing problems. The protests primarily center around the particular injustices experienced by African Americans in the United States, specifically pertaining to police brutality.
Since 2013, there have been over 2,588 Black Lives Matter protests in the United States within a span of 1,580 days (Robinson 2018), demonstrating how the movement has effectively achieved its second primary objective by fostering collective struggle among black individuals. These demonstrations occur nationwide at different times and locations, providing opportunities for African Americans and their allies to participate. Furthermore, when the movement was established in 2013, its third and final main goal was to end widespread and intentional violence targeting African Americans. In my opinion, this goal has also been successfully accomplished by the movement. Firstly, it is crucial to define what is meant by "rampant and deliberate violence" (Herstory 2014).
Extensive media coverage has focused on the intentional violence that has occurred in the past five years, with widespread protests across the nation using the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on Twitter. This violence can be attributed to police brutality towards African Americans.
Police brutality refers to law enforcement's excessive and/or unnecessary use of force (Mastrine 2018). The most severe form of this brutality, which has sparked numerous Black Lives Matter protests, is when innocent or non-threatening individuals are fatally shot by the police.
Eradicating this pervasive issue may not be practically feasible or may require a significant amount of time. Therefore, assessing its success involves examining whether there has been a decrease in incidents of this specific type of police brutality in recent
years.
Contrary to popular belief, African Americans are not killed at a higher rate than any other race in the United States, despite the media attention on tragic shootings and Black Lives Matter protests. Surprisingly, it is actually whites who experience a significantly higher rate of fatalities by law enforcement. However, this does not diminish the concerning number of African Americans being killed. This distressing statistic can be attributed to the fact that African Americans make up only thirteen percent of the total US population. The correlation between their smaller population and higher number of deaths caused by law enforcement has given rise to the inception of the Black Lives Matter Movement.
In 2015, Jon Swaine of the Guardian reported that there were a total of 1,136 deaths caused by law enforcement. Among these deaths, African Americans accounted for 27%, highlighting the disproportionate impact on this racial group compared to others in the United States. Additionally, unarmed black Americans were killed at a rate five times higher than unarmed white Americans during that year.
In 2016, Swaine reported a total of 1,091 deaths caused by law enforcement. The percentage of African Americans killed decreased from 27% to 24% during that year.
In 2017, the percentage of African Americans fatally killed by police officers in the United States increased to twenty seven percent, resulting in 1,129 recorded deaths (D’Onofrio 2018). This data suggests that there has not been a recent rise in the number of African Americans being killed by police officers. As a result, it can be concluded that the movement has accomplished its third primary objective.
Counterargument
Nevertheless, there are differing viewpoints regarding this matter.
To further support my conclusion, it
is crucial to address the most common opposing argument concerning the success of the Black Lives Matter Movement since its establishment in 2013. This argument suggests that the movement has not achieved its main goal: preventing or significantly reducing police brutality against African Americans in the United States. Supporters of this viewpoint argue that available statistics on the issue are highly unreliable and do not show a noticeable decrease. Despite no clear decline in police brutality against blacks, I personally believe that the Black Lives Matter Movement can still be considered successful because they have accomplished their other two primary objectives and there has been no increase in police brutality against African Americans in recent years.
Despite acknowledging one aspect of the opposing argument, I must admit that there is indeed no centralized authority maintaining dependable records of this specific data. The information I am reviewing is solely derived from the records collected by various sources throughout the years. Each source may possess different categories of statistics or identical ones, yet their findings may diverge due to disparities in their numerical values.
This is a significant issue that needs prompt attention. The FBI currently does not require police officers to disclose the racial demographics of individuals involved in fatal incidents. Moreover, officers can choose to withhold other important details, such as the reasons and methods behind the killings (Swaine ; McCarthy 2017).
Having access to this information is crucial for examining whether there has been an increase or decrease in police brutality against African Americans in recent years. The lack of data creates a barrier in reaching a conclusion regarding the third main goal of the movement.
Both proponents
and opponents share an interest in having the FBI mandate police officers to consistently report all relevant information when a fatal incident occurs. This would make it much easier for both sides to come to an agreement if necessary and reliable information were consistently reported and accessible.
Conclusion
I will reexamine the matter and explain my position. The Black Lives Matter Movement emerged in 2013 after the tragic deaths of Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman's subsequent acquittal. Zimmerman, who was acquitted, shot Martin, an unarmed and innocent individual. Numerous similar incidents occurred, such as the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. Many individuals nationwide supported this movement to address and correct these injustices.
The Black Lives Matter Movement was founded with three main objectives: 1) to bring attention to the systemic racism experienced by African Americans in the United States, 2) to create a platform for solidarity among black individuals in their struggle, and 3) to combat intentional violence against black communities. In my opinion, the movement has effectively achieved these core goals and can be considered successful. By utilizing various social media platforms and establishing thirty chapters across the country, the movement has raised awareness about systemic racism in America. Additionally, through organizing numerous protests over the past three years, it has allowed black individuals to come together as a unified force and advocate for transformative change.
Over the past four years, there has been no increase in police brutality towards African Americans. This accomplishment is consistent with their third main goal of eliminating the systemic and deliberate violence experienced by the African American community.
