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Black Lives Matter Tag

Posted by Leslie Eastman on August 24, 2016 16 Comments
Legal Insurrection has chronicled the radical social upheaval pursued by Black Lives Matter, which seems to have enriched some of the participants more than accomplished anything worthwhile. However, the lack of BLM response to the Louisiana floods now have some black Americans questioning the movement's true motives. Jerry L. Washington, a former Baton Rouge resident who went to southern Louisiana to lend a hand after the disaster, is angry about failure to respond. He has a few choice words for Black Lives Matter:

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 21, 2016 23 Comments
The "Movement for Black Lives," a coalition of approximately 50 Black Lives Matter groups, recently issued a policy platform which raised issues such as mass incarceration, policing, and other issues of importance. Yet in that platform were included deranged libelous accusations against one and only one foreign country - Israel. That section of the platform was not surprising to anyone who has been paying attention to our coverage of how anti-Israel activists methodically and deliberately set out years ago to stoke racial tension against Israel by falsely accusing Israel of being responsible for local police shootings of blacks in the U.S. That effort went into overdrive during the Ferguson riots after the Michael Brown shooting in the summer of 2014. Since then, redirecting the U.S. Black Lives Matters movement to turn it as a weapon against Israel has been a top priority for anti-Israel activists, including those working under the banner of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement. Bassem Masri Ferguson Resistance is in our blood The platform language against Israel was a milestone in that effort, putting the Black Lives Matter movement in the position of accusing Israel of the Crimes Against Humanity of Genocide and Apartheid. But in order to do that, those terms had to be redefined in ways that are applied to no one else.

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on August 18, 2016 15 Comments
Tell us, Carol: the leaders of which Black Lives Matter chant would you suggest Donald Trump "reach out" to: "pigs in a blanket, fry 'em like bacon," or "what do we want? Dead cops! When do we want it? Now!" On her CNN show this morning, Carol Costello suggested to Trump supporter Scottie Nell Hughes that Trump should be "reaching out" to Black Lives Matter. When Hughes replied that the Trump campaign has reached out to the black community, Costello interrupted incredulously "to Black Lives Matter?" Perhaps someone can do the research and find the last time Costello suggested to a Hillary supporter that Clinton should be "reaching out" to the KKK or Stormfront.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 16, 2016 3 Comments
We have thoroughly documented how anti-Israel activists have been falsely blaming Israel for U.S. police shootings of blacks in order to stoke and exploit racial tensions, Exposed: Years-long effort to blame Israel for U.S. police shootings of blacks. That effort went into overdrive during the Ferguson riots over the shooting death of Michael Brown, Intifada Missouri – Anti-Israel activists may push Ferguson over the edge:
As much tension as there is, an underreported story is the active role of “pro-Palestinian” activists who have exploited the Ferguson riots and tension this summer and fall to push their anti-Israel agenda. That anti-Israeli agenda, which involves encouraging confrontation with police in solidarity with Palestinians, is helping provide the accelerant to an already volatile situation.
Ferguson Palestine contingent We were among the first to call attention to this development, which was largely ignored by the the Jewish and pro-Israel communities which support many of the issues raised by the Black Lives Matter movement. Ferguson was a turning point, as leading anti-Israel U.S. professor Robin Kelley recently acknowledged:

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on August 14, 2016 41 Comments
Chaos, violence, and looting erupted in Milwaukee late Saturday night following the shooting of an armed suspect by police. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports:
A standoff between police and an angry crowd turned violent Saturday night in the hours after a Milwaukee police officer shot and killed an armed suspect during a foot chase on the city's north side. After an hours-long confrontation with officers, police reported at 10:15 p.m. that a gas station at N. Sherman Blvd. and W. Burleigh St. was set on fire. Police said firefighters could not for a time get close to the blaze because of gunshots. Later, fires were started at businesses — including a BMO Harris Bank branch, a beauty supply company and O'Reilly Auto Parts stores — near N. 35th and W. Burleigh streets.
Watch as the violence unfolds:

Posted by Occam's Razor on August 12, 2016 5 Comments
We wrote recently about the Black Lives matter platform statement (under the name MB4L: Movement for Black Lives) and, in particular the “Invest-Divest section,” which attacks Israel and accuses Israel of ‘genocide’ and being an ‘apartheid state’. As reported, the statement was condemned by the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) of Boston, and the Anti-Defamation League. Subsequent condemnations were issued by the American Jewish Committee, the Union for Reform Judaism, as well as the more left-wing J-Street (the liberal “pro-Israel, pro-Peace” lobby group), and T’ruah: the rabbinic call for human rights.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 11, 2016 39 Comments
If you think the Black Lives Matter movement is just or even primarily about "Black Lives," then you don't understand the movement. A new research report, based on detailed interviews with those active in the movement, demonstrates that the organized movement is a vehicle for a radical leftist anti-Capitalist agenda, using "Black Lives" as the hook. The research is by Anne Sorock of The Frontier Lab using a "deep values" methodology. Several years ago Anne was a regular contributor to Legal Insurrection, but that has fallen off as she devoted herself The Frontier Lab. Deep values research is something pioneered by Dr. Brian Wansink at the Food & Brand Lab at Cornell University. Anne received her MBA at Cornell and worked with that group. Deep values research seeks to understand not just what consumers like or want, but what deeply held values lead to such decisions. At The Frontier Lab, Anne applies those research methods to politics.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 09, 2016 14 Comments
On August 9, 2014, Ferguson, MO, Police Officer Darren Wilson shot dead Michael Brown. Our first post about it was on August 11, 2014, as rioting broke out. We kept the coverage non-evaluative. We learned from prior cases, such as Trayvon Martin, not to accept at face value racial and other narratives being spun. We also learned from events such as the Boston Marathon and Newtown shootings that initial facts reported by the media often are wrong. We embedded this news reports of the looting: Within days, various supposed eyewitnesses would claim Brown was a passive victim -- an account we now know to be untrue -- as summarized in this MSNBC report we posted on August 13, 2014:

Posted by Fuzzy Slippers on August 07, 2016 19 Comments
Hillary Clinton's relationship with law enforcement, like her involvement with any issue, has evolved over time. Sometimes over night. There are reports that Hillary, as First Lady, had little respect for—and was even verbally abusive toward—the Secret Service agents assigned to protect her . . . with their lives if necessary.  Apparently, she also gave these men the impression that her dislike extended beyond the Secret Service to "law enforcement and the military." After receiving harsh criticism from the left when she made the "mistake" of declaring that "all lives matter,"  Hillary started courting the Black Lives Matter movement, attempting to ingratiate herself and secure their support for her campaign. Against this backdrop and when faced with the decision of whether or not to seek the endorsement of the National Fraternal Order of Police, she declined to submit to the process.  A move seen as a snub by the police union.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 04, 2016 14 Comments
For years we have been documenting the efforts by anti-Israel activists to stoke racial hatred of Israel through the concept of "intersectionality" - the notion that all revolutionary struggles, particularly against racism, are connected. The almost exclusive focus, however, is Israel.  Hence, Israel is falsely blamed for local police shootings of blacks in the U.S. based upon false and misleading claims I debunked in my post, Exposed: Years-long effort to blame Israel for U.S. police shootings of blacks. The movement to connect Ferguson-to-Palestine launched after the Michael Brown shooting, and has been a singular focus of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) activists ever since. Ferguson Palestine contingent

Posted by Mike LaChance on July 30, 2016 9 Comments
Somerville, Massachusetts is an interesting city just outside of Boston. The densely occupied community is home to lots of old school Boston blue-collar types while also being extremely diverse. It's also hipster heaven, as anyone who's ever been to Davis Square can tell you. A Black Lives Matter banner has been hanging on Somerville City Hall for a while, but after the recent rash of shootings directed at police, the Somerville PD asked to have it taken down. The mayor declined the request and tensions are now mounting.

Posted by Mary Chastain on July 26, 2016 2 Comments
My old boss Andrew Breitbart said politics are downstream from culture. When celebrities say or do something, it is important to take notice. Popular metal band Disturbed received honors from the Mansfield Police Department in Massachusetts after they allowed them to use their cover of Sound of Silence in a video. All the band members expressed gratitude while vocalist David Draiman told the cops they have much respect for the cops and thanked them for everything they do:
"It is a crying shame what has happened in this country," he told the cops. "You guys give everything for us so it's the least we can do."

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on July 25, 2016 23 Comments
Such a shame that current Philadelphia Mayor, Democrat Jim Kenney—and Hillary Clinton for that matter—weren't around for the drafting of the Declaration of Independence. Back in 1776, Kenney and Clinton obviously would have been much more enlightened, morally-advanced voices than Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin . . . On today's Morning Joe, Kenney—who endorsed Hillary early in the primary season—was asked about the prevalence of Black Lives Matter voices and concerns to be heard at this week's DNC. He responded with a condemnation of law enforcement, the court system and even the Declaration of Independence. Kenney declared that black lives "haven't mattered in our country over the history of law enforcement and in the criminal courts and in the way people have been treated from the 1600s up until now. When the Declaration of Independence was signed, it was all men are equal: well, all white men with land were created equal."

Posted by Mark Finkelstein on July 19, 2016 8 Comments
This could go down as the most egregious example of an MSM "anchor" groveling at the feet of a liberal activist . . . During MSNBC's coverage of the opening night of the Republican convention, Tavis Smiley complained that, unlike cop killers, "killer cops" are not called "vicious and despicable and cowardly and reprehensible." Brian Williams immediately piped up: "Tavis, if I appointed you president and you still refused to run we would have to appoint you." I'm guessing Williams meant to say "if I nominated you for president you and you refused to run we would have to appoint you." But in his obsequious excitement, poor Brian stumbled on his words. But we get it, Williams: there's nobody you'd rather see as president, even if it means overturning democracy and appointing him, than someone willing to call cops "vicious, despicable, cowardly and reprehensible."

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 18, 2016 8 Comments
At group calling itself Atlanta is Ready (#ATLisREADY), aligned with the Black Lives Matter movement, recently issued a set of demands to the Mayor of Atlanta, including:
We demand a termination to APD’s involvement in the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange (GILEE) program, that trains our officers in Apartheid Israel
The Mayor rejected the demand, finding that counter-terrorism training benefits the Atlanta Police Department's ability to protect Americans: You could chalk this incident up to just some isolated ploy by local activists, but that would be a mistake. Rather, there has been a multi-year effort by left-wing and Islamist anti-Israel, anti-Zionist, and openly anti-Semitic activists to hijack racial tensions in the United States and redirect that anger towards Israel.

Posted by Mary Chastain on July 18, 2016 13 Comments
Instead of a protest, Black Lives Matter activists in Wichita, KS, joined their local police department for the First Steps Cookout to open dialogue and bring together the community. Both sides decided this was a better option, especially after police shootings in Dallas, TX, and Baton Rouge, LA. https://twitter.com/TrooperChadKHP/status/754832830287405056

Posted by Kemberlee Kaye on July 11, 2016 10 Comments
I've been surprisingly encouraged post-Dallas shootings. Rather than surrender to the usual partisan bias, Americans from all walks of life are working together, praying together, and recognizing the country's dire need for change. Real change. This video captures once such instance. When protesters and counter-protesters crossed paths in the streets of Dallas, they didn't fuss or fight. They met on neutral turf and prayed together.
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