Civil Rights Day

List of 3 items.

• Historical Roots of BLM

  In order to understand the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement (also known as Black Lives Matter Global Movement), it is imperative that we recognize that the roots of BLM extend far beyond its founding in 2013 by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi. We must understand how our country’s well-documented history of racial inequality has planted the seeds that have borne fruit in BLM. This 21st century reaction to inequality--including generational wealth gaps, redlining, unequal access to healthcare, unequal treatment by healthcare professionals, unequal access to comparable education, pervasive food deserts, voter disenfranchisement, the history of policing throughout the United States and inequitable treatment and sentencing outcomes in courts of law, as well as the broken, unfulfilled promises of the 1960’s Civil Rights era (this list is not exhaustive), has coalesced into a movement that demands that we, as human beings, take stock of and responsibility for dismantling systemic injustices and inequities. It behooves us as a community to: 1) understand the history of inequity that has led to the Black Lives Matter (BLM) Movement; 2) understand our local history and the ways in which BLM manifests itself in Austin; 3) grow in our role as allies and supporters of BLM and understand the ways in which we can contribute to a more just and equitable society.

• What Does Black Lives Matter Stand For

  The Black Lives Matter movement is rooted in guiding principles to affirm that All Black Lives Matter. Those principles are: 
  

  1. Restorative Justice
  2. Empathy
  3. Loving Engagement
  4. Diversity
  5. Globalism
  6. Queer Affirming
  7. Trans Affirming
  8. Collective Value
  9. Intergenerational
  10. Black Families
  11. Black Villages
  12. Unapologetically Black
  13. Black Women

• Understanding the Purpose and Power Behind the Phrase “Black Lives Matter”

  As Alicia Garza (2014) explained, "#BlackLivesMatter doesn’t mean your life isn’t important–it means that Black lives, which are seen as without value within White supremacy, are important to your liberation. Given the disproportionate impact state violence has on Black lives, we understand that when Black people in this country get free, the benefits will be wide reaching and transformative for society as a whole.” 
  
  Lizz Schumer (2020) offered an succinct explanation of why “All Lives Matter” serves as a dismissive and problematic response to “Black Lives Matter”:
  

  While the intention of the phrase "All Lives Matter" may be to put everyone’s life on equal footing and convey a sense of unity, responding "All Lives Matter" to "Black Lives Matter" is actually more divisive than unifying. That's because it discounts and diminishes the focus on the violence and discrimination Black individuals face every day in this country.

  Think of it this way: If you get into a car crash and one person has a 

  serious head injury but the others have a few bumps and bruises, the person whose life is at risk gets first priority when it comes to medical care. That doesn’t mean paramedics won’t help the rest of the passengers, but that triage places the most dire situation first in line. Or, to look at it another way, if someone keeps setting your house on fire, you'd want firefighters to do something about it. Wouldn't it upset you if instead, people kept telling you that "all houses matter equally," if yours was the one burning?

  
  Affirming that “Black Lives Matter” aligns oneself with the promise of both our foundational and national language, and acknowledges that we, as individuals, have agency in how we treat one another, in what we demand from our leaders, and in how we move forward at the city, state, and national levels.