The co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement talked to The Nation about her initiative to engage skeptics and build political power among black communities.
By Collier Meyerson
In 2015, I profiled activist and organizer Alicia Garza as part of Glamour’s “Women of the Year” issue. Garza, along with Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi, is credited with coining the phrase #BlackLivesMatter, popularizing the hashtag and for its quick ascendance into a nationally recognized movement against police brutality and violence. Profiling Garza in Glamour felt like a big deal — it solidified her, and Black Lives Matter, as having penetrated the consciousness of mainstream America.
Since then, Black Lives Matter has gone from a rallying cry to an organization with more than twenty chapters, which is that is part of a racial-justice coalition of over 50 other organizations. A mission statement was drawn up, demands were made.
But after the election of Donald Trump, which many in the movement see as a nationalist backlash to the core principles Black Lives Matter has brought into focus, we began to see a drop-off in the media coverage of protests and actions. But perhaps that’s not the best measure of the movement. “Protest is best used when it’s part of a strategy that involves escalating tactics that build pressure on targets,” Garza told me. Aware of in the political environment we’ve now found ourselves in, Garza, who is still one of the most visible organizers of the Black Lives Matter movement, recently launched the Black Futures Lab, a project that will be devoted to engaging in the electoral process without neglecting deeper organizing. “Our mission to engage Black voters year-round; our commitment to using our political strength to stop corporate influences from creeping into progressive policies; and our plan to combine technology and traditional organizing methods to reach Black people anywhere and everywhere we are,” its website explains. Garza’s recent efforts have been touted by Senator Kamala Harris and television giant Shonda Rhimes. Read more here: https://www.thenation.com/article/black-americans-face-impossible-choices-at-election-time-alicia-garza-wants-to-change-that/