US

Black Lives Matter Switches Resistance Tactics In Trump Era

REUTERS/Patrick T. Fallon)

Daily Caller News Foundation logo
Amber Randall Civil Rights Reporter
Font Size:

The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement is slowly turning away from protests to focusing on policy to effect change in the Trump Era, according to The Washington Post Thursday.

BLM, known for its protests against the police shootings of black men, wants to focus on changing policy to resist President Donald Trump, rather than protesting in the streets.

“What people are seeing is that there are less demonstrations,” Alicia Garza, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter, told WaPo. “A lot of that is that people are channeling their energy into organizing locally, recognizing that in Trump’s America, our communities are under direct attack.”

Various leaders in the BLM movement agree with Garza. The election of Trump jolted the group, causing them to make the change from protesting. The movement now wants to focus on gaining more voting power and getting involved in more political movements. Garza helped with the Women’s March platform and DeRay Mckesson, an activist who live tweeted the Ferguson riots, joined Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez’s transition team.

“We will have to have a variety of strategies if we are going to achieve substantive change,” Mckesson explained to WaPo. “Systems and structures change people’s behavior. Neighbors change people’s minds. In moving forward, we have to continue to be mindful to work along both lines.”

Mckesson also helped create Campaign Zero, an organization that released the “Resistance Manuel” shortly before Trump’s inauguration. The online site listed multiple Trump policies, such as healthcare and abortion, that would reportedly hurt minorities and women. The site includes ways the public can fight against Trump’s plans. (RELATED: BLM Group Releases Handbook For Resisting Trump’s Agenda)

“The question shouldn’t be ‘Will this activism be sustained?’ because for many people the work is very personal and it isn’t going to stop. The question is how it will sustain and how it will continue to manifest,” Aditi Juneja, a Campaign Zero member, said to WaPo.

Follow Amber on Twitter

Send tips to amber@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.