Black Lives Matter (BLM) burst on the scene in 2013 in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin. The organization’s stated mission is “to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes” (https://blacklivesmatter.com/about/). From humble beginnings, BLM effectively galvanized people concerned with anti-Black violence into chapters in cities across America, including Boston, Chicago, DC, Detroit, and Los Angeles. As a result of its meteoric rise in popularity and impact, BLM has become a fierce opponent of those purportedly engaged in racism. Even so, I cannot support BLM for a number of reasons.
Before I delve into those reasons, let me stress that I do not begrudge BLM’s exclusive focus on Black lives. Though I certainly agree that all lives matter, the existence of an organization activated by its concerns over Black lives is logical. No one person or organization can address all the ills that plague our society, so organizations that specialize their focus make sense. This sort of thing even exists in the Church, as there are ministries or Christian organizations that exclusively focus on particular needs, such as homelessness, homosexuality, drug addiction, abortion, etc. Even God Himself placed in the Church distinct five-fold ministries, each with a specific anointing—i.e., apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Ideally, however, specialized ministries, or organizations, work together to positively impact the whole of society. Thus, I see no fault in establishing an organization to exclusively address a genuine need. Now, let’s discuss my reasons for NOT supporting BLM.
First, BLM is not concerned with all Black lives. The discussion of exclusivity in the previous paragraph does not apply here because BLM claims to support all Black lives. That claim includes “Black queer and trans folk, undocumented folks, folks with records, women, and all Black lives along the gender spectrum” (https://blacklivesmatter.com/about/). Yet, BLM ignores black-on-black violence, which snuffs out Black lives at an alarming rate, certainly more than the police. For instance, Chicago Police Department data from 2011 reveal that 75% of murder victims during that time period were black while 71% of the murderers were also black (https://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/chicago-75-murdered-are-black-71-murderers-are-black/). This phenomenon continues to this day where over the past year in Chicago, 310 of 523 homicides involved Black victims with the majority of the perpetrators also being Black (https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-chicago-homicides-data-tracker-htmlstory.html). What’s more, this phenomenon is not isolated to Chicago but has come to characterize other major cities, including New York City, Philadelphia, Louisville, and Atlanta (https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/gun-violence-surging-cities-hitting-communities-color-hardest-n1233269). Granted, intraracial crime, particularly murder, is not unique to the Black race. Still, it seems that such a pervasive and deadly problem would merit some attention from an organization that supposedly cares about all Black lives.
Secondly, I contend with BLM’s take on the traditional family. BLM claims to “disrupt the Western-prescribed nuclear family structure requirement by supporting each other as extended families and ‘villages’ that collectively care for one another, especially our children, to the degree that mothers, parents, and children are comfortable” (https://blacklivesmatter.com/what-we-believe/). Though expressed euphemistically, BLM’s beef with the two-parent family concept—incidentally, a Biblical principle—is problematic. Father absenteeism, the most common phenomenon associated with the abandonment of the nuclear family, has grave consequences. For example, statistics show that children who hail from fatherless homes are more likely to experience abuse and neglect, have behavior problems, abuse drugs and alcohol, commit crimes, and go to prison. The negative impact of fatherlessness multiplies as it regards dropping out of high school (twice as likely), poverty (four times more likely), and teen pregnancy (seven times more likely (https://www.fatherhood.org/fatherabsencestatistic#:~:text=There%20is%20a%20father%20absence,social%20ills%20facing%20America%20today).
Fatherlessness, with its repercussions, is a part of every race. However, it prevails in the Black race, where it almost doubles that of Hispanics and almost triples that of Whites (https://fathers.com/statistics-and-research/the-extent-of-fatherlessness/). Given that fatherlessness is linked to almost every societal ill and disproportionately affects Black children, BLM’s dismissal of the nuclear family belies its so-called devotion to Black lives. In short, BLM advocates for the very thing that has been a bane to the Black community for decades.
Similarly, BLM’s silence on abortion is disconcerting. Consider this statement from their website: “We are guided by the fact that all Black lives matter, regardless of actual or perceived sexual identity, gender identity, gender expression, economic status, ability, disability, religious beliefs or disbeliefs, immigration status, or location” (https://blacklivesmatter.com/what-we-believe/). Notice that there is no reference to the Black lives that have been lost to abortion since Roe v. Wade (over 18 million!). It has been shown repeatedly that Black communities are disproportionately targeted by abortion providers like Planned Parenthood and that as a result, Black women continue to kill their preborn babies at a rate exceeding that of all other women (https://www.preciouslife.com/news/155/black-sheriff-says-if-black-lives-mattered-theyd-protest-at-abortion-clinics/). I still recall the image of New York lawmakers cheering in standing ovation for the passage of a bill legalizing abortion up to the point of birth. I was even more chagrined to discover that in New York City in 2016 (and previous years) more Black babies were aborted than were born. And abortion ends more Black lives than any other form of killing. Therefore, I wholeheartedly empathize with a question posed by famed sheriff, David Clarke: “If Black Lives Matter and they certainly do, why is it that the one place known for killing off black babies (Planned Parenthood)…is not being protested” (https://www.preciouslife.com/news/155/black-sheriff-says-if-black-lives-mattered-theyd-protest-at-abortion-clinics/).
Finally, I take issue with BLM’s call to defund the police. The definition of defunding the police varies among proponents from diverting huge amounts of police funding to other services to disbanding entire police departments (https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/06/09/the-movement-to-defund-or-disband-police-heres-what-you-need-to-know-now/#6e9e062c7f1a). Either way, this measure threatens to weaken police and hamper their ability to provide needed policing. People are right to question the merits of defunding the police, especially as violence continues to plague cities across America. A “financially weakened and demoralized police department” could result in “large layoffs [and] an overwhelmed smaller force [which] may end up doing more damage than good” (https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2020/06/09/the-movement-to-defund-or-disband-police-heres-what-you-need-to-know-now/#6e9e062c7f1a). For example, after the death of George Floyd, a Minnesota neighborhood, Powderhorn Park, collectively decided to not involve law enforcement in their community. This decision resulted in increased crime, including violence and drugs. A month into the experiment, Powderhorn Park became “a 24-hour open-air drug market, littered with syringes [with] shootouts [occurring] across a residential street, with gunmen emptying their pistols at one another” (https://www.city-journal.org/defunding-police-not-the-answer). Ultimately, defunding or disbanding police will adversely impact communities. And what community do you suppose would be likely to suffer the greatest impact? Charles Love, Assistant Executor Director of Seeking Educational Excellence, says it well: “Violent crime is on the rise across the country, and it disproportionately affects black communities” (https://www.city-journal.org/defunding-police-not-the-answer). Again, BLM espouses a policy that does not bode well for Black Americans.
In conclusion, Black Lives Matter as a concept is viable, especially given America’s past of aggression against minorities. As an organization, however, Black Lives Matter falls woefully short. It appears to lack concern for all Black lives, and it champions polices that are ultimately detrimental to Black lives. The organization certainly has a right to determine its own focus and adopt its own policies. However, when that focus and those policies run counter to my Christian sensibilities—not to mention simple logic—it renders the organization unworthy of my esteem. The organization’s stance (or lack thereof) on issues like black-on-black violence, abortion, and police defunding contradicts their professed support of Black lives. Consequently, I cannot lend my support to them. I urge you to do your own research, including a review of BLM’s website, to draw your own conclusions about the organization.
God bless you, as you continue to hear and heed His Voice!
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