https://whistletimes.com/black-live-matters-blm-protest-and-the-2020-presidential-election-ebikapade-amasuomo/

Emergence of Black Live Matters (BLM) and Historical Race Relations
The shooting of a black teenager, Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida early 2012 by George Zimmerman and the events that followed led to the formation of Black Life Matters.

Black Life Matters movement is one of the most powerful civil right organizations in the United State. The movement began after the acquittal of George Zimmerman, who admitted fatally shooting Trayvon Martin after claiming self defense.

Before that event, the United State has always had difficult race relations especially between whites and black people. After the abolition of slave trade, African American groups began demanding justice, fairness and equity for former slaves and their descendants. Some levels of success were recorded by those early groups. However, perceived marginalization of African Americans remained till this day. People of African origin in the United State argue that, institutionalized racism are directed towards them and that equal opportunities elude them.

The murder of Trayvon Martin and the eventual emergence of a movement to demand for better treatment did not come as a surprise to many. After the murder, one option available to African Americans was to complain, mourn the death and do nothing or allow the status quo to remain.

These options would have meant the death of many more African Americans. As Gallagher, et.al (2018) pointed out in an article, protest movements have history of forcing difficult conversations in order to enact social change. Hence, African Americans saw the death of Martin as an opportunity to press for social change through protests.

At the time of his murder, Trayvon Martin was a student at Miami High School. He had been visiting relatives in the Sanford area of Florida. At the time of his shooting, Martin who was dressed in a hooded sweatshirt had been watching TV and playing video games with his other relatives; he briefly left them to purchase fruit juice and candy from a convenient store within the neighborhood.

On his way home, the hooded teenager was spotted by George Zimmerman. Mr Zimmerman called the local Police authority to report a suspicious teen in the neighborhood. He was then advised against confronting the teenager. Zimmerman was said to have ignored Police advice. According to Benjamin Crump, a lawyer who represented the Martin family, Trayvon Martin was on the phone with his 16 years old girlfriend at the time of his murder. The girlfriend confirmed she heard a voice in the background asking Martin about his identity and why he was in the neighborhood, an altercation ensured and Martin was shot in the chest. Mr. Zimmerman was charged but was acquitted and cleared of murder.

Following the outrage that greeted his acquittal, various activists, civil society groups began protesting across the country. The groups soon adopted an online hashtag “Black Lives Matters.” The organizers of the protests argued that Trayvon Martin was only one in a series of other needless murders of young blackmen as well as racism across the country. They particularly drew similarities between Trayvon Martin murder and that of a black teenager in 1955. Emmett Till had been visiting relatives in Mississippi when he was accused of flirting with a white woman, Carolyn Bryant. Bryant was working as a store attendant when Emmett Till visited the store to get groceries; he was accused of flirting with the store attendant. Her husband and another relative gruesomely murdered Emmett Till and then proceeded to dumping his body in a river.

Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

The murder caused national outrage amongst African Americans and subsequently led to series of civil right movements. One notable figure involved in the protests of Emmett Till death was Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., who delivered several remarkable speeches across the United States. On the eight anniversary of Till’s murder, Martin Luther King Jr delivered an iconic speech, “I Have a Dream” in Washington.

Brief Overview of Results and Achievements of BLM Protests
However, many groups in the United States have argued against the activities of Black Life Matters movement, critics say the group has made little or no impact since its formation compared to early civil right movements. Some say the group activities are disruptive to the average Americans and that the group should be disbanded.

A critical examination of the group’s activities with a view to determining successes recorded and how the movement has influenced the United State revealed that a sharp similarities between the Black Life Matters movement and the civil right movements of 1950s to 1970. One wonders what life in the United State would have been for average African Americans without civil rights activism between 1950 and 1968. It was the civil right movements of that era that highlight the difficult race relations in the United State to the world. The civil right movements were successful in appealing to the consciousness of Americans and world leaders to the plight of Africa Americans.

Since its formation, the Black Matters Movement has grown and gained international momentum. Various news media and scholarly articles have been written about the group and whether or not the movement has achieved its aims and objectives. In order to determine the impact of the movement, it is important to examine what the organization set out to achieve. In an article by the Washington Post, June 11, 2020, Andrea Benjamin pointed out the main purpose of Black Life Matters protest, she pointed out that one of the key goals of the protest is to sway public opinion on how African Americans are treated in the United State. One might then ask, how have they faired with this goal? It was revealed that since the movement begun protesting and pressurizing state institutions in 2012. In the aftermath of the protest conducted by the BLM movement that greeted the killing of Gorge Floyd, a poll conducted shows that almost 70% of Americans believe that Gorge Floyd murder signals a broader problem within law enforcement, compared with 29 percent who consider it to be an isolated incident. This finding represents a significant leap and show of support or understanding to the plight of African Americans amongst members of the public compared to polls conducted some years earlier. A 2014 poll had shown that that only 43 percent of Americans felt that the killing of unarmed African American men in Ferguson, Mo., and New York City signified a broader problem (compared with 51 percent who thought they were isolated affairs). Furthermore, most Americans 74%, express support for Black Life Matters protests. With such massive public support, it goes to show that it is only a matter of time before authorities in the state begin to make massive reforms to address police brutality and other social issues affecting black people. It is important to point out that in 2016 only 43% of Americans supported the movement whereas in 2020, findings from, the Atlantic, September 3 2020 shows that as a result of the continued pressure and protests by the Black Life Matters movement, there is a new wave of yearnings for cultural and political change sweeping across the country. In many neighborhoods across the country, portraits of African American victims of police brutality are pasted on building walls. According to the report by the Atlantic, signs that read black lives matter are posted in residential and storefront windows, and the words have been painted onto city streets. Statues that venerate racists, segregationists, and Confederates have come tumbling down. Brands and corporations have rushed to acknowledge systemic racism, ranging between strong and lukewarm commitments to addressing structural inequities (McFadden, 2020). Even government institutions are taken measures to show solidarity with black communities across the country. For instance, one City Council (Minneapolis), in response to police brutality of African Americans voted to completely re-organize its police department. Similarly in Wisconsin and California, some school districts are also showing support by calling off police contracts. In order not to be left out of the show of solidarity and support, government at the national level responded to pressure from demonstrators by signing an executive order to demand for police reform across the country.

In a ceremony after the outcry that trailed the death of George Floyd, President Trump signed the executive order on Tuesday, the 16th of June, 2020. The order require police departments to achieve better standards on the use of force and also placed a ban on the use of chokeholds by police officers except in cases where their lives is under imminent danger. The order also calls for better trainings and the involvements of social workers as well as mental health professionals in order to avert or reduce needless fatalities amongst vulnerable groups. To that end, it is obvious that the Black Live Matters movement has been very successful in their pursuit. Gallagher, et.al (2018), reported that the Black Life Matters movement has indeed amplified the plight of African Americans with regards to police brutality and extrajudicial killings of Black people in America.

However, despite the continuous protests and pressure from the group, it appears to many as though police brutality is continuing unchecked. Some critics have argued that the situation with police brutality is not better getting any better despite the effort of the movement. However, very little or no data exist to support the notion that cases of police brutality amongst black Americans are rising. It is likely that but for the effort of the movement, many more black Americans may have died in the last few years. Media coverage, the rise of Social Media for information dissemination and the general sensitization of the populace to issues of police brutality targeted at black people are factors that contribute to the notion that cases of police brutality are rising despite efforts of the Black Life Matters movement. It is likely that individual cases receive more attention now than they would have 20 years ago as information on incidents of police brutality are widely distributed and reported to a wide range of audience through various platforms that are now available. Therefore, it is natural that it may seem as though the situation is not getting better. However, it is difficult to categorically conclude that despite the efforts of BLM movements police brutality has remained at the same level or has increased. This is not to downplay the problems facing African Americans. Without a doubt more black people die in encounter with law enforcement than other races in the United State. Nonetheless, it is likely that the numbers may have been higher without concerted efforts from activists and movements such as the Black Life Matters. Hence, it can be argued that the movement has helped reduce police brutality amongst black people and also influence the state positively by forcing conversation on race and culture in the United State.

Emergence of Kamala Harris as Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate
Whilst it may not be entirely correct to attribute the emergence of Kamala Harris as a Vice Presidential candidate to the Black Live Matters movement, the role of BLM movement in her emergence however, cannot be dismissed. The group indirectly influenced the choice of the Democratic Party to pick a black candidate through their persistent advocacy.

Over the years BLM movement argued and pushed a narrative that Black people are underrepresented in the United State. They successfully highlight the suffering of black people and the fact that people of colour are not as privileged as their white colleagues. Hence, in order demonstrate genuine effort towards uniting the country and be widely accepted, it is only natural that Joe Biden reach out to minority communities by picking someone from amongst them. As a result of the police brutality, the black community seems to have the sympathy of Americans. Hence, the momentum favored African Americans politically. A closer look at Kamala Harris campaign shows that she constantly identifies with her black heritage as well as her Indian heritage. Her emergence as a Vice Presidential candidate cannot be separated from the narratives of how Black Americans are underrepresented in many strata of the American society.

From the foregoing, it is safe to conclude that the efforts of Black Lives Matters movement paid off as the plights of black Americans have been highlighted across the world. News and images of civil disobedience and protests organized by the group are shown across the world. Amateur footages of police brutality are shared and pushed across several Social Media sites by BLM activists and their sympathizers. The group gained momentum and sympathy from many Americans. In a bid to effect changes quicker, the movement is fast aligning with political parties. Pressure from the group has led to the signing of an executive order on police reform and it is likely that many more reforms will follow in the years to come as a result of the persistent protest and pressure.

Bibliography
Benjamin A 2020, Polls show strong support for the protests — and also for how police handled them, The Washington Post, June 11th 2020. https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/polling-protests-police-protesters-opinion/2020/06/11/987259fe-ab5a-11ea-9063-e69bd6520940_story.html

Gallagher RJ, Reagan AJ, Danforth CM, Dodds PS (2018) Divergent discourse between protests and counter-protests: #BlackLivesMatter and #AllLivesMatter. PLoS ONE 13(4): e0195644. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0195644&type=printable

McFadden, S, 2020: Black Lives Matter Just Entered Its Next Phase, the Atlantic, September, 3rd, 2020

National Museum of African American History and Culture, nd: Emmett Till’s Death Inspired a Movement. https://nmaahc.si.edu/blog-post/emmett-tills-death-inspired-movement

Reality Check Team, 2020; George Floyd: How are African-Americans treated under the law? BBC, June 1st 2020

Wilkie, C, 2020: The case against Trump is ‘open and shut,’ says Kamala Harris in her first speech as Biden’s VP pick, CNBC, August 12th 2020.

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The article shows the power and effect of protest

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