There’s a movement, #BlackLivesMatter, that was “created in 2012 after Trayvon Martin’s murderer, George Zimmerman, was acquitted for his crime, and dead 17-year old Trayvon was post-humously placed on trial for his own murder”. From their web page:
“Rooted in the experiences of Black people in this country who actively resist our de-humanization, #BlackLivesMatter is a call to action and a response to the virulent anti-Black racism that permeates our society. Black Lives Matter is a unique contribution that goes beyond extrajudicial killings of Black people by police and vigilantes.
When we say Black Lives Matter, we are broadening the conversation around state violence to include all of the ways in which Black people are intentionally left powerless at the hands of the state. We are talking about the ways in which Black lives are deprived of our basic human rights and dignity. How Black poverty and genocide is state violence. How 2.8 million Black people are locked in cages in this country is state violence. How Black women bearing the burden of a relentless assault on our children and our families is state violence. How Black queer and trans folks bear a unique burden from a hetero-patriarchal society that disposes of us like garbage and simultaneously fetishizes us and profits off of us, and that is state violence. How 500,000 Black people in the US are undocumented immigrants and relegated to the shadows. How Black girls are used as negotiating chips during times of conflict and war. How Black folks living with disabilities and different abilities bear the burden of state sponsored Darwinian experiments that attempt to squeeze us into boxes of normality defined by white supremacy, and that is state violence.
#BlackLivesMatter is working for a world where Black lives are no longer systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. We affirm our contributions to this society, our humanity, and our resilience in the face of deadly oppression. We have put our sweat equity and love for Black people into creating a political project–taking the hashtag off of social media and into the streets. The call for Black lives to matter is a rallying cry for ALL Black lives striving for liberation.”
If they intend for a world where no black lives are intentionally targeted for demise, why haven’t they been protesting the crime in Chicago?
As of December 8, there have been 419 homicides in Chicago, with a total of 2,415 people shot, the majority of them black. In case you don’t read this web site on a regular basis, I’ve done many a recap over several months of Chicago’s weekend shootings:
- This is a good weekend in Chicago: 3 dead, 11 wounded in weekend shootings (11/24)
- Monday Chicago shooting report: Same story every weekend…(10/27)
- Chicago gun violence: What is it going to take to get people mad? (10/6)
- Paging Emanuel, Sharpton and Jackson: Do you know what’s happening in Chicago EVERY weekend? (9/29)
- A good weekend in Chicago? Less than a dozen shot (9/15)Quiz time: How many were shot in Chicago over the weekend? (9/8)
- Quiz time: How many were shot in Chicago over Labor Day Weekend?
- It’s Monday, quiz time…you know the drill: How many people were shot in Chicago over the weekend? (8/25)
- Quiz time! Guess how many people were shot in Chicago over the weekend (8/4)
- Quiz time! Guess how many people were shot in Chicago over the weekend (7/28)
- Quiz time! How many people were shot in Chicago over the 4th?
- Gun control in Chicago: 3 dead among 21 wounded in afternoon, overnight shootings (6/7)
Antonio Smith
If they intend for a world where no black lives are intentionally targeted for demise, did they protest over the intentional death of 9 year-old Antonio Smith (#blacklivesmatter)? He was shot by a black gang member who thought Smith was warning the rival gang members. From my post: “A gangbanger on parole for a gun charge shot a 9-year-old boy as he searched for rival gang members, then fled and told his friends he ‘shot a shorty,’ prosecutors said Saturday. Police Supt. Garry McCarthy said Friday that Allmon shot the boy because he thought he was warning the rival gang members Allmon was after. He said Allmon shot the boy after Antonio said a single word: “Hey.” Antonio was shot six times — in the chest, forearm, back, shoulder and hand. Allmon, Williams and Denard have criminal convictions, according to prosecutors. Allmon was sentenced to three years in prison for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon by a gang member and released on parole on Aug. 1. Williams has two misdemeanor battery convictions. Denard, convicted of possessing a gun as a juvenile, was also on parole at the time of Antonio’s killing.”
If they intend for a world where no black lives are intentionally targeted for demise, did they protest the convicted Pennsylvania abortionist Kermit Gosnell for killing three babies who were born alive in his clinic (#blacklivesmatter)? Were they concerned about the women bearing the burden of a relentless assault on our children and our families (#blacklivesmatter)?
From my post: “Gosnell routinely performed illegal abortions past Pennsylvania’s 24-week limit, that he delivered babies who were still moving, whimpering or breathing, and that he and his assistants dispatched the newborns by “snipping” their spines, as he referred to it. Gosnell has said he considered himself a pioneering inner-city doctor who helped desperate women get late-term abortions.“
If they intend for a world where no black lives are intentionally targeted for demise, did they protest about the 31,328 African American babies that were killed by abortion in 2012 in New York City, while only 24,758 black babies were born (#blacklivesmatter)? From Traildust’s post:
“New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio pledged to partner with Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers to expand their businesses even further by providing them with “city-sponsored” space to set up shop. De Blasio, who was elected mayor with 73 percent of the vote, also pledged to help abortionists wipe out their main competition–pro-life crisis pregnancy centers–which he referred to as “sham” clinics that do not provide “legitimate health care.” In addition, de Blasio said that in order to ensure there is a sufficient number of abortionists to meet the high demand, he would continue to force doctors who train in city hospitals to perform abortions as a routine part of their training. The mandate is a NARAL-backed program that began under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, one which de Blasio referred to as “groundbreaking.”
#BlackLivesMatter
DCG
