Please understand what #BlackLivesMatter means to the community

[rbrnmw]

If you lost your, son, daughter, husband, brother, grandchild, cousin to Police Violence wouldn't you want to hear your loved ones lives mattered? By ignoring it you are adding to their pain. Saying all lives matter is dismissive of your pain. When the whole movement is to raise awareness of the extreme pain they are feeling because their loved wasn't just murdered they were dismissed as nobody's. Just put yourself in their shoes and you will understand.

[MADem]

1. Here's the problem with the people who get all bent out of shape with BLM, and do the "But but but"

when people try to tell them that black lives, do, INDEED, matter.

They think--because they are self centered--it means that THEIR lives don't. They only know how to play zero sum, and they think it's a frigging CONTEST, when it's not.

I suppose, if you said look, let me put it another damn way -- BLACK DEATHS MATTER, BLACK MUIRDERS MATTER, BLACK CHILDREN GETTING KILLED BY POLICE MATTER-- maybe they'd start to take the point. Or maybe not. You just might get more of the same.

I'm just flummoxed at how anyone can get 'mad' when someone tries to tell them that black lives matter. It is just the ULTIMATE example of angrily/defensively/deliberately missing the point. And it's not like there hasn't been a boatload of press to explain it all to them.

[rbrnmw]

2. All it takes is some humanity.

Just imagining their pain acknowledge it and vow to do something to stop the senseless murders. Imagine it was your loved one.

[MADem]

3. Unfortunately, you're asking too much from some.

"Why, my little Fauntleroy would NEVER find himself in that sort of situation!!!"

Of course, Fauntleroy never has to worry about Driving While Black.

[rbrnmw]

4. +1

Or doing almost anything else while being black

[Iris]

8. Now I'm starting to think it's projection

In other words if they were to say, "White lives matter" what they'd really be saying is "White lives matter more than others."

I'd go further and say this has pretty much been a default way if thinking throughout history.

[underthematrix]

5. I support Black Lives Matter

With that said, I think the backlash was a wakeup call to reach out or accept some mentoring from civil rights elders. The young people who are part of BLM are smart, fierce and compassionate. They're only focus has been on addressing the horrors of police brutality. Deray is going to be teaching at Yale which will also provide an academic construction of the importance and need for Black Lives Matter.

I think each candidate is responsible for explaining how they will address the issue of police brutality which is actually a public health issue in the AA community. I think because they are all running to be President of the United States, which is president of all the people, they can say All Lives Matter. Then go on to explain the historical and current context for the narrative called Black Lives Matter, which is specific to the AA community and the manner in which policiing occurs within predominantly AA public spaces or in relation to AA bodies in other public spaces, i.e. grocery shopping in a Walmart, catching a cab, eating in a Denny's.

[rbrnmw]

6. Yes but I would like to see all of them to take a minute to listen

No buts just listen. I hope it's addressed by all Democratic candidates without the buts soon. I really like Bernie but am going to keep an open mind until the debates. I never decide this early.

[underthematrix]

7. I think the debates is an appropriate space

for talking about community policing and criminal justice reform. I liked HRC's response to the BLM leaders who asked for a meeting and got it. HRC is a great policy wonk and knows how policy happens and gave them some great advice which they used to create ZERO. I think I got that right but not sure. Bernie also listened to BLM when they confronted him at one of his rallies. I believe he focused on criminal justice reform. My concern is to make sure we understand presidential candidates are running to represent everyone. i think it is important that we make sure AA issues especially the taking of black lives through police brutality have SEVERAL SEATS at the table. For example, we want to make sure there are AA folks in critical leadership positions in the Department of Justice. We want more progressive judges of color. We want expansion of the My Brother's Keeper Initiative, and other strength-based community programs that protect and nurture black lives.

[JustAnotherGen]

10. Something to remember re #BLM

The chant first started with the Trayvon Martin murder trial. It only picked up steam if you will in Ferguson. If you go to their site (a month or two ago not sure if updated) it was clear - Martin's death.

We can't ignore the call to white Americans to stand up straight and fly right. Zimmerman was at no time ever a police officer. He just played one when he felt like it - and an innocent young man was found guilty for his own murder because it was unconscionable that a teenaged black male could feel threatened by a white Hispanic male Adult.

I think even if he had been 10 or 11 - Zim would have gotten away with it.

And that's why black lives matter.

[rbrnmw]

11. We got to see how just by killing a black child you could be framed a hero

He was taken under the racists wing and given hundreds of thousands to live off of. He was defended even though his bullshit story wasnt believable. Trayvon was the victim not that want to be not even a rent a pig Zimmerman.

[JustAnotherGen]

13. And that's how

A revolution from within starts.

I'm not talking guns, ammo, tanks, overthrow -

I'm talking about an internal (to the community) revolution about how we should be crafting our way forward -

And how we demand others meet us half way on that road.

[Live and Learn]

9. I think a lot of original supporters of #BlackLivesMatter have been thrown under the bus

simply for supporting the candidate that they feel will really make a difference in both black lives and American lives in general. Some people really do believe we really are one (while also recognizing that there still is is inequality) but others here insist on separating us.

I will continue to work against discrimination, the militarization of our police forces, justice inequality, and economic inequality as I always have. Towards those ends, Bernie is the candidate I support wholeheartedly. I believe he is the only hope for any change in the system.

[raven mad]

12. I think all black lives matter. Too many of my friends are gone.

I'm white.