BLM matters

I was a civil rights activist in the 1960s. But it’s hard for me to get behind Black Lives Matter. -- “I support BLM’s cause, but not its approach,” said Barbara Reynolds. “Black Lives Matter is a motley-looking group to this septuagenarian grandmother, an activist in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Many in my crowd admire the cause and courage of these young activists but fundamentally disagree with their approach.  Trained in the tradition of Martin Luther King Jr., we were nonviolent activists who won hearts by conveying respectability and changed laws by delivering a message of love and unity. BLM seems intent on rejecting our proven methods. This movement is ignoring what our history has taught.”

Longtime L.A. civil rights leaders dismayed by in-your-face tactics of new crop of activists -- “For the veteran activists—many of whom grew up in the era when the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached nonviolence—the actions of some of the protesters distract from their message.”

Black Lives Matter leader declares war on police -- “...we want the immediate end of government sanctioned murder by the police. And we prepare to stop these government sanctioned murders by any means necessary.”

Terry Crews Doubles Down On Desire To Unite People Despite Leftist Outrage: I ‘Decide To Die On This Hill’ -- “Are all white people bad? No. Are all black people good? No. Knowing this reality – I stand on my decision to unite with good people, no matter the race, creed or ideology. Given the number of threats against this decision – I also decide to die on this hill...Crews was subjected to vile racial remarks over his tweet, including some who accused him of being a ‘white supremacist in black skin’!”

The audacity of white people who say black people “aren’t black” if they do not agree with them (the white people) is one of the most rampant styles of racism that white people seem to get away with – when the white persons are Left of center and the black person stands to the Right of them.

1,023 people have been shot and killed by police in the past year -- “Despite the unpredictable events that lead to fatal shootings, police nationwide have shot and killed almost the same number of people annually — nearly 1,000 — since The Post began its project [in 2015].”

It is true that proportionately more blacks are killed than whites. According to statista.com, 933 people were killed by police officers in 2019. Nearly 23 percent of those killed by police officers were black, while blacks make up only 13 percent of the population. However, looking at another statistic should cue us that this is not the whole story. About 49 percent of the U.S. population in 2019 were male. A whopping 95 percent of the people killed by police officers in 2019 were male! (888 males and only 42 females.) A bare reading of the numbers says police officers are prejudiced against men. There must be more than a bare reading of the numbers if we want to understand the problem and find solutions. I suspect a great number of partisans don’t actually want to find solutions, especially if the solutions do not fit or further their agenda. 

Further, I recently read an article that made some good points about “unarmed suspects.” For example, a bare number may report an unarmed suspect being shot and killed. And while that is true, finding the actual facts of a specific case might show the suspect tried to grab the law enforcement officer’s weapon and ended up being shot with it. I am not saying there are no rogue cop cases. I know some myself. Nevertheless, the truth is not always where it seems to be if we only superficially hear about “unarmed suspects are shot and killed.”

One thing many may not realize is that believing black lives matter is not exactly the same as Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter is an organized body with leadership, membership, and financing – and an agenda that goes far beyond and away from its simple slogan.