If you had to make a list of some of the most important socio and political movements of the last decade, Black Lives Matter would undoubtedly be right at the top. They’ve been celebrated. They’ve been vilified. But one thing is for certain: they’ve made the type of impact that few other groups have been able to manage.
But at the same time, there is a sentiment in the air that Black Lives Matter has gone beyond its prime. Now that the Trump administration is out and the Biden administration is in, the working theory is that they’re simply no longer needed – they’ve done their job.
In no uncertain terms, that is false. In truth, the Black Lives Matter movement is more important than ever. That is a sentiment that Dr. Candice Matthews, formerly known as Dr. Candice Enecio-Hinton, very much agrees with for a wide range of different reasons, all of which are worth exploring.
The Ongoing Impact of Black Lives Matter
Also commonly referred to as BLM for short, the Black Lives Matter movement was originally “founded” in 2013. The term “founded” is in quotes because, unlike a lot of other groups of its type, BLM is totally decentralized – meaning that there is no organizational leadership to speak of. It is simply a movement of the people aimed at highlighting racism in all its forms, putting an end to discrimination and reminding people of the inequality that African Americans face each and every day.
It came together in response to the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old who was killed by George Zimmerman. After Zimmerman was acquitted, protests broke out around the country and with that, BLM began life.
By 2014, Black Lives Matter was protesting against police actions all over the country regarding the deaths of African Americans. Those include Michael Brown, Laquan McDonald and Eric Garner, among others. Every year, names were being added to that list. From Charley Leundeu Keunang and Anthony Hill in 2015 to Alton Sterling and Korryn Gaines in 2016.
But the long-lasting impact of Black Lives Matter goes far beyond straightforward protesting – which is why they can and likely will stand the test of time. In the beginning, they were considered to be nothing if not radical. A group of people who would gladly stand in front of a courthouse for hours or shut down local roadways in an effort to cause as much disruption as possible. But now, in hindsight, people can see them for what they really are:
Advocates for social change.
Truly, it doesn’t matter which marginalized group you’re talking about – social change will always be necessary. There will always be some oppressed people who need defending and they will call upon all those willing to help them accomplish precisely that. With Black Lives Matter, we’ve all been shown a new way to accomplish that goal. A way to grab the attention of people in a way they just won’t be able to break away from.
There’s a reason why we’ve been talking about Black Lives Matter for almost a decade, according to Dr. Matthews, and we’ll likely still be talking about them in another 10 years, too.
