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Black Lives Matter facts for kids

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Black Lives Matter
Official logo depicting name in black capital letters on yellow background with "LIVES" color inverted
Formation July 13, 2013; 11 years ago (2013-07-13)
Founders
Type Activist organization
Purpose Anti-racist advocacy and protest
Location
  • International
    (mostly in the United States)
Key people

Black Lives Matter (BLM) can refer to a Twitter hashtag, a slogan, a social movement, a political action committee, or a loose confederation of groups advocating for racial justice. As an international activist group, BLM originated in the African-American community. They are against violence and racism toward black people.

The movement began in 2013 with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on social media, after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of Trayvon Martin. They became famous for their street demonstrations, following the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. The earlier sparked riots and unrest in Ferguson, Missouri. The latter sparked protests all over the United States.

Since the Ferguson protests, participants of Black Lives Matter have demonstrated against other African-Americans' deaths, like Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Laquan McDonald, Philando Castile and Alton Sterling.

The movement returned to national headlines during the George Floyd protests.

Strategies and tactics

Black Lives Matter originally used various social media platforms—including hashtag activism—to reach thousands of people rapidly. Since then, Black Lives Matter has embraced a diversity of tactics. Black Lives Matter protests have been overwhelmingly peaceful.

Nobel Peace Prize nomination

Black Lives Matter was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in January 2021. The nomination was submitted by Norwegian activist and Member of Parliament Petter Eide. The award eventually went to journalists Maria Ressa and Dmitry Muratov.

"All Lives Matter"

The phrase "All Lives Matter" sprang up as a response to the Black Lives Matter movement, shortly after the movement gained national attention. Several notable individuals have supported All Lives Matter. Its proponents include Senator Tim Scott. NFL cornerback Richard Sherman supports the All Lives Matter message, saying "I stand by what I said that All Lives Matter and that we are human beings."

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Black Lives Matter para niños

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