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Black Lives Matter Blames ‘White Supremacy,’ ‘Capitalism’ For Orlando Terror Attack

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In their statement on the Orlando terror attack, the activist group Black Lives Matter blamed white supremacy, the patriarchy and capitalism for the attack in which Omar Mateen killed 49 people.

“Despite the media’s framing of this as a terrorist attack, we are very clear that this terror is completely homegrown, born from the anti-Black white supremacy, patriarchy and homophobia of the conservative right and of those who would use religious extremism as a weapon to gain power for the few and take power from the rest,” the statement said.

“Homegrown terror is the product of a long history of colonialism, including state and vigilante violence. It is the product of white supremacy and capitalism, which deforms the spirit and fuels interpersonal violence,” the statement continued.

The statement later claimed that religious extremism “is not new to America and is not unique to Islam. For centuries, religion has been used to subjugate queer people of color and lay the groundwork for our deaths.”

After listing the names of those killed in Orlando, the statement called for “a new vision for safety that prioritizes human rights and does not facilitate deadly violence. We need a world that realizes that the word ‘terrorist’ is not synonymous with Muslim, any more than ‘criminal’ is synonymous with Black,” the statement said.

“The enemy is now and has always been the four threats of white supremacy, patriarchy, capitalism, and militarism. These forces and not Islam create terrorism. These forces, and not queerness, create homophobia.”

“Until these systems are defeated, until anti-Blackness no longer fuels anti-Muslim and anti-queer and trans bigotry, exploitation, and exclusion — we can never be truly free.”

The statement was written in both English and Spanish sometime last week. It went largely unnoticed until pointed out by Accuracy In Academia on Monday. Black Lives Matter has yet to return an email seeking comment.

Follow Peter Hasson on Twitter @PeterJHasson