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Arguably no movement has been more controversial in recent years than the Black Lives Matter movement. Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, all African American victims of senseless killings. There are many more victims who did not receive national media attention. These tragic deaths all share a stunning commonality they are the direct result of discrimination against African Americans. Our former president is African American and the civil rights movement took place nearly 60 years ago. How is discrimination still an issue for African Americans? The continued prevalence of racial stereotypes is partially to blame. Black Lives Matter has been criticized by some who say All Lives Matter and claim the movement is racist.

This year, Ziad Ahmed made headlines when he was accepted into Stanford University after writing, #BlackLivesMatter one hundred times as his answer to What matters to you, and why? on his application. This is an example of the deep personal investment some people have in this polarizing movement. The (recently disgraced) news anchor Bill OReilly is a vocal critic of the movement and in 2016 commented, White Americans despise this crew. All Lives Matter critics argue that the movement is racist for emphasizing the value of African American lives only. These detractors see no evidence of structural racism in our society. They refuse to accept that our laws and criminal justice system demonstrate that black lives are valued less than white lives in our society. Black Lives Matter doesnt claim that African American people are superior; it advocates for racial equality and an end to discrimination. This hardly fits the definition of racism.

The unequivocally conservative position to oppose the Black Lives Matter movement is based off a misconception. The idea that affirmative action leads to reverse racism (discrimination by racial minorities against the racial majority) is entrenched within the logic behind the All Lives Matter stance on this issue. Affirmative action are policies in which an institution or organization actively engages in efforts to improve opportunities for historically excluded groups. The misconception is that these affirmative action policies discriminates against deserving whites in favor of their lesser qualified black peers. This logic is flawed. And racial quota systems are outlawed in most states. This is a manifestation of a stereotype that African Americans are less intelligent and comes from generations of discrimination which have embedded this bias into society.

Take the [hypothetical] situation, of a white police officer shooting an unarmed blackteenager. There is no video, the officer claims he was acting in self-defense, and there are only a few witnesses who are all African American. If this officer were put on trial for murder, what would the defense do? Attempt to discredit the witnesses? Try to portray the witnesses as anti-police, uneducated, incompetent, criminal, biased, and immoral? What is this doing besides trying to convince the jury that the voice of one white person is worth more than several black voices? If this police officer were found not guilty like other officers who have faced similar trials, what does that say about our society? Ironically, the justice system in this instance is leaving the African American community without justice.

African Americans currently face structural racism. The All Lives Matter movement discredits the notion that African Americans struggle with this on a daily basis. This viewpoint reflects white privilege and fails to acknowledge the everyday reality that African Americans face. When you say All Lives Matter, you deflect attention from racism in this country. That is because the point of All Lives Matter is to diminish the Black Lives Matter movement and black lives.

The cities Baltimore, Charleston, and New York have all payed out seven figure settlements to families of prominent victims. Despite this, none of these cities have admitted any wrong doing by officers. If All Lives Matter then why have the families of these victims not received justice? With the exception of the OJ Simpson trial it is hard to find another example of a publicized case that had a favorable outcome for the African American victim or defendant. Justice for these victims would be achieved in the form of the people behind these killings being held responsible. It would include recognition by elected officials that to this day African American people face discrimination. If all lives really do matter, than as former President Obama said, lets Not just dismiss these protests and these complaints as political correctness or as politics or attacks on police.

Jack Ryan

Class of 2020

Pre-major in college of arts & sciences

Read more:
Guest Editorial: The Importance of Black Lives Matter | Opinion ... - Dailyuw