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The summer of 2020 was unforgettable. The murder of George Floyd sparked protests around the country, drawing millions of Americans into the streets for demonstrations. And the sounds that summer from the chants of peaceful protesters to the frequent explosions of violence in response from police are still echoing throughout the nation. Many musicians added their voices, sometimes as protesters themselves, but also by releasing songs about the impact of police violence and racism, like The Bigger Picture from Atlanta rapper Lil Baby.

Theres a long history of music from the African American voice being used in resistance. On Fridays episode of A Word, I spoke with Atlanta-based entertainment and music journalist Jewel Wicker about what Black protest music looks like today. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Jason Johnson: What struck you about The Bigger Picture and how Lil Baby put it together? And is this the kind of thing that he tends to talk about or was this a departure?

Jewel Wicker: This was certainly a departure from what Lil Baby has usually put out content-wise. And I think what really struck me was the timing of the release. It was something that Lil Baby couldnt have known when he put it out, but less than 24 hours after he released that song, a Black man by the name of Rayshard Brooks was killed by police in South Atlanta in the neighborhood that Lil Baby grew up in. And so what was really special I think about this protest anthem that was released was that, 24 hours later, it became an anthem in Lil Babys own city.

What are some of the other songs that came out last summer that you think really spoke to the moment? And again, were those songs with sort of long-term activist, hip-hop stars and rappers, or were they departures as people were paying attention to the moment?

We had songs from everyone from DaBaby, who released a remix of his song, Rockstar that had a Black Lives Matter type of verse to it. H.E.R., a singer, released a song called I Cant Breathe. Anderson .Paak released a song called Lockdown. A rapper by the name of YG filmed a music video at a protest. A group here in Atlanta called Spillage Village released a song called End of Daze. Their music video touched on the protest.

I think it became really common at that time for artists to be speaking on what was going on. I spoke to a Harvard professor, her name is Ingrid Monson. She said what really stood out to her about last years protest music was the timeliness of it, right? If you had protest music in previous decades, they couldnt put it out and have it become the song of a protest the next day. But with streaming, you can put out a song and then the next day, it can become something that people who are in the streets are listening to. Or you can film a music video at a protest and put it out while protests are still going on. This timeliness element is what really stood out about some of the songs that were coming out last year.

What do you think distinguishes Atlanta protest music from maybe songs coming out of Houston or a song coming out of Chicago? Do you think Atlanta has its own flavor to protest music?

One, I would say that Atlanta artists are very linked oftentimes to our politicians here. We see a Killer Mike and a T.I. at a press conference with the mayor. Thats not an uncommon sight here in Atlanta.

But then another thing I would want to point out: I spoke to a reporter by the name of Rodney Carmichael. He does a podcast called Louder Than a Riot, and what he pointed out, which is very true, is that although our artists might not always be speaking about protests specifically, theyre always talking about racial justice in their own ways. If Lil Baby is rapping about growing up in poverty and trapping and things like that, that is inherently political. When you think of Goodie Mobs Soul Food, that was a political album. And so I think we have to stretch our imagination of what we think of when we think of political music. And if we do that, a lot of times the hip-hop music that were listening to is political because being Black, growing up in poverty, growing up in some of these situations are inherently political.

How many of these hip-hop songs and how many of these artists really came out with music last year that was George Floydcentered, that was a change from what or who they had been musically before?

Whats really interesting, and Ive been thinking about this, because when Lil Baby put out The Bigger Picture, I interviewed him last summer for GQ and profiled him, and I spoke to him about releasing that song because it was such a departure for him to put out something that was so blatantly political. What he told me back then, paraphrasing, I dont want to be Martin Luther King or Malcolm X. I put out that song. I spoke to the moment because it touched me and I want to be done with it. I dont want to be involved with politicians.

The DA here, he lost, but he was running for reelection. And he had said that Lil Baby endorsed him. Lil Baby said, I did not. He was very clearly stepping back from being involved in politics. Now, since then, Ive been very interested in the fact that he went on to perform it at the Grammys and he had Tamika Mallory and he had an actor re-create almost the killing of Rayshard Brooks at the Wendys and things like that.

He was just photographed at the White House with Nancy Pelosi. Its a sharp contrast to what he said last July about not wanting to be involved in politics. Im not sure why he made that departure. I have not spoken with him since. I cant say if it was something that he just felt compelled to do. I cant say if it was something that was business-motivated. Lets be honest, a lot of rappers tend to, once they get to a certain levelthey cant always say F the police, or they cant always be explicitly anti-government in the way that they were before; its not lucrative for them to do that. So I cant say if hes doing that just because his heart is leading him to do it, or if its because its just bad for the brand for you not to go ahead and lean into this.

Theres a long history of music telling the story of Black Americans fighting for our rights. So were going to step back in time for a moment. Jewel, youve written about how closely many musicians like the Staple Singers worked with civil rights leaders in the 1960s. How did these relationships come about? Was it because they were already active in the movement and this was just a way that they could participate? Were they moved by what was happening at the time and went into the studio and decided to cut an album?

I was really interested in that and I looked to Bernice Johnson Reagon. I didnt get to interview her, but I did some research about her previous interviews, and she was a founding member of the SNCC Freedom Singers, and shes from Southwest Georgia. And she told PBS that the Staple Singers toured with Martin Luther King Jr.; Mahalia Jackson organized fundraisers for him. They were very much intertwined with the movement beyond the songs that they were recording in the studio. They were actually out activating and organizing a lot of times with these leaders.

I think thats really interesting because weve seen some of that play out recently when we see our artists link up with leaders and politicians today. So I was really interested in that link and in seeing how artists go beyond the music that they released, beyond that moment of going into the studio and feeling compelled to release a song and going beyond that and saying, I want to actually organize, I want to fundraise. I want to do things that are actually going to make me a part of the movement beyond producing the soundtrack.

A lot of artists in the 1960s were all connected to the Black church. They came out of the Black church, they learned from the Black church. Church attendance has gone down in the African American community as it has for almost everybody else. So where are we getting our musicians from now? Where are we getting that sort of activist music?

Well, I would say two things. I would say that even if were not in the church, we usually grew up with a grandma or somebody who was in the church, so the church is still very much a part of us as Black people, even if we didnt grow up specifically in the church. So a lot of times when you listen to some of these songs, you can still hear that element that is a part of these songs.

Then the second thing I would say is weve seen over the year that hip-hop has become the dominant genre and so we really have seen hip-hop artiststhey were very outspoken in previous decades as well, but their music has taken center stage in pop culture. We really have been able to hear them take the front in these moments. And even before last year with protests when we think back to Kendrick Lamar and even, say, Beyonc releasing songs in the Black Lives Matter movement times. They have been able to release songs that were really outspoken about the times that were in and maybe dont have that specific church element, but I think if you listen close enough, you can still hear some of those elements.

We hear about artists endangering their entire lives and careers in the 50s and 60s, but the backlash today is different. So whats the difference in consequences for Black artists making protest music today versus 50 or 60 years ago?

I mean, I think youre right. I think you might not become a Nina Simone in releasing a song, but I also dont want to minimize the impact that some of the controversy might have on an artist when they are attacked by, say, Fox News or by pundits for releasing some of these songs, especially if youre not a Beyonc or a Kendrick Lamar. Releasing a song like F Donald Trump could have a really bigand it didnt for YG. Hes finebut it could have a really big impact on your career. Or recently, weve been talking a lot about Black celebrities and mental health. We dont know what the impact is on their mental health when theyre taking these risks and releasing songs like this. So I dont want to minimize it, but I certainly do think that because of the broad nature of pop culture today and the ways in which artists can have these niche groups of fans, or stans as we call them sometimes, you run less of a risk of being just completely exiled.

Listen to the entire episode below, or subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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The Soundtrack of the George Floyd Protests - Slate

The Italian Football Federation made a pair of statements clarifying the national team's stance

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has confirmed that the national team will take the knee as a sign of solidarity if their next opponents Belgium choose to do so, but says doing so is not in support of the Black Lives Matter campaign.

The statement comes after centre-back Giorgio Chiellini said that the team would kneel if an opponent did so.

Amid confusion on whether players were free to kneel,the federation backed that viewpoint, saying that taking the knee will be done to show solidarity with their opponents.

As Chiellini explained, the team will kneel in solidarity with the opponents, the federation said, according to La Repubblica.

Not for the campaign itself, which we dont share. The Austrian players didnt kneel and ours remained standing. If those from Belgium do so, ours too will in solidarity with them.

TheFIGC went on to add in a second statement:The Italian Football Federation, in reaffirming its unconditional stance against racism and any form of discrimination, considered it opportune to give the team freedom to adhere to the Black Lives Matter campaign.

As President Gabriele Gravina already affirmed not more than a week ago, the FIGC considers the imposition of any behaviour in itself a form of speaking and sustains the squads decision for Euro 2020 games, including against Belgium on Friday.

The sensibility of each member of the Italian national team in defence of human rights is in the Azzurri DNA, as proven by multiple initiatives and declarations, and cannot be subordinated by the adherence to one not the only manifestation of support for the fight against racism.

To date, there has been confusion about Italy's stance as only a handful of players took the knee prior to the team's group stage match against Wales.

Andrea Belotti, Matteo Pessina, Emerson Palmieri, Rafael Toloi and Federico Bernardeschi all knelt alongside the entire Wales team, prompting a discussion on how Italy would handle such situations going forward.

After the incident,former Prime Minister Enrico Letta slammed the players that did not kneel, saying: "I appeal to our players to take the knee all together. Five took the knee and the others didn't frankly, it was not a good spectacle.

"If they can all agree on the tactical plan in the dressing room beforehand, maybe they can do the same about taking the knee. It's a positive gesture. Looking at it on Sunday, with all the Wales players kneeling and only half the Italian players doing it, was not a good image."

His frustrations were echoed by former Italy star Claudio Marchisio.

Theres freedom of choice, but this is a very important protest, and I would have preferred everyone to kneel down, he told RAI Sport.

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Italy will take the knee before Belgium clash 'as a sign of solidarity' - but national team 'do not support... - Goal.com

Younger activists who criticized him several years ago for not being grass-roots enough have recently turned to him for advice as they wrestle with the type of scrutiny he has faced, he said.

I think out of the tension, it will make us all settle and find more possible ways to work together, he said. I think that sometimes its uncomfortable, but itll bring us to a better place, I hope.

For years, national leaders warned that the Black Lives Matter movement could fracture if internal concerns were voiced publicly, said YahN Ndgo, who recently stepped back as a core organizer with one of the breakaway chapters, Black Lives Matter Philly. That prevented many chapters from speaking up, she said.

But when the national leaders spun off a new organization, BLM Grassroots, last year to act as an umbrella for all chapters, those with concerns had to speak up, Ms. Ndgo said. It felt like another attempt by the national organization to evade accountability, she said.

If a group is not acting in service to the movement, she said, then it has to be addressed.

Amid questions from critics, the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, which received tax-exempt status as a nonprofit organization last year, in February released its most complete accounting in its roughly six-year history. It reported receiving $90 million in donations last year, the most it had ever raised in a year. A majority of the funds were saved, the report said, with $8.4 million spent on operational expenses and $21.7 million distributed to local aid organizations and chapters.

The report caught the attention of Mr. Brown, who has at times seen the foundation he established after his sons killing struggle to get resources, he said. In a video posted to social media, he stood alongside a local activist, who demanded that Black Lives Matter contribute $20 million to local organizers.

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Black Lives Matter Has Grown More Powerful, and More Divided - The New York Times

George Floyd's murder in Minneapolis in May 2020 sparked the largest racial justice protests in the United States since the Civil Rights Movement. But the movement went far beyond this nation's borders it inspired a global reckoningwith racism.

This time last year, countries across the globe had some of the largest Black Lives Matter protests in their history, all inspired by the video of Floyd brutal death in police custody on May 25, 2020. Crossing continents and cultures, Black activists saw Floyd's death as a symbol of the intolerance and injustice they face at home.

Some of these countries had their own George Floyd a Black person whose death by police brutality or racial violence created national outrage. Everywhere, activistsknew there was no going back to the way things were before they witnessed Floyd's final moments.

President Biden said that when he met with Floyd's young daughter Gianna, she told him, "Daddy changed the world." These worldwide protests show how right she was.

The United Kingdom had the largest Black Lives Matter protests in the world last summer outside of the United States. Even before George Floyd, protesters were already galvanized by a death in their own country.

Belly Mujinga, a Black transport worker in London, died from COVID-19 in April 2020 after saying that a White man spit on her in a racist attack at work. Coworkers said Mujinga had complained before the incident about not having proper protection while working during the pandemic.

Police closed the case, citing a lack of evidence, which mobilized a first wave of protests. Floyd's death fueled this into a larger movement confronting the country's historical and systemic racism.

"England is not an overtly racist country, in my humble opinion," Imarn Ayton, an organizer of the London protests, told CBS News at the time. "It is a covertly racist country. So we are much more subtle and polite with our racism."

But the time to be polite was over.

Protesters and police clashed at some of the demonstrations. Some protesters tore down and vandalized statues of slave traders and political leaders even some who were considered national heroes. A statue of Winston Churchill in London's Parliament Square was spray-painted with a message calling him a "racist."

Within days, London's protests exploded from about 20 people outside the U.S. embassy to more than 20,000 people flooding the streets. Celebrities joined, including Madonna and John Boyega, who gave an impassioned address to protesters.

Months after the protests, the government commissioned a report examining institutional racism in the U.K. But its release in March 2021 stunned activists because it simply rejected their claims of systemic problems.

"Put simply we no longer see a Britain where the system is deliberately rigged against ethnic minorities," the report from the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities said.

"Too often 'racism' is the catch-all explanation, and can be simply implicitly accepted rather than explicitly examined."

That same month, Parliament introduced a bill that would give police greater power to restrict protests. Ironically, it inspired anew round of protests with the rallying cry "Kill The Bill," that also called attention to the problem of violence against women.

"We have taken one step forward and about five steps back since the BLM movement in the U.K.," Ayton said.

"Seeing Black and White people galvanized, standing against racism, scared the living daylights out of the government, out of the Metropolitan Police, out of a lot of people. I think it's purely due to the fact that there was a huge shift in power in that moment."

New Zealand has a global reputation for peace and tolerance. But Black Lives Matter protesters there say that comes from a reluctance to speak directly about race and discrimination. George Floyd finally started those conversations.

"New Zealand's probably one of the most difficult places to be Black in this world," Guled Mire, an organizer for the protesters in the capital city, Wellington, told CBS News. "Imagine you are Black, but you're not allowed to be Black. That's literally how it is over there."

Protests coincided with New Zealand conducting a trial run of arming its police officers something not routinely done there. The experiment was a response to the 2019 mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, which were committed by a white supremacist. But Black and Indigenous populations worried that armed police would only put them in danger.

"We addressed the prime minister directly and the government and we said, 'We're not gonna stand for this, and we oppose this,'" said Mazou Q, a rapper who helped organize protests in Auckland. "Because we don't want to end up like the United States."

The government announced days after the first protests that it would scrap plans to arm police, though it did not credit the protests for influencing that decision.

People of African descent compromise less than 1% of New Zealand's population. But the protests brought Black protesters together with Indigenous Mori and Pacific Islanders, creating a movement for racial progress unlike anything the country had seen for years. One protest in Wellington drew more than 20,000 people.

"The kind of escapism that we indulged in in the past wouldn't suffice anymore," Mazbou Q said. "We had to reckon with what was happening, and we had to take a side...There was no more status quo as an option."

In France, protesters rallied against their nation's own history of racial injustice and police brutality, which has very different roots from the U.S.

In 1960, 17 sub-Saharan African nations, including 14 former French colonies, gained independence from their former European colonists. Today, many of the Black people living in France emigrated from those colonies.

With an eye on the United States, children of immigrants from Africa and the Caribbean are bringing race into the French public discourse.

"There is this refusal to take into account the history of slavery and colonization, and how race was part of it and how we're still dealing with the legacy," said Nathalie Etoke, an associate professor of Francophone and Africana Studies at the City University of New York Graduate Center.

The thousands of protesters in Paris were joined by the family of Adama Traore, who died on his 24th birthday in 2016 under circumstances similar to Floyd. Three police officers put their weight on him to restrain him, and he could not be revived after being brought to a police station. There were no charges for his death.

"We're demanding acts of justice, not discussions," Adama's sister Assa Traore said in a press conference last June, as protests continued into their second week. "We'll protest in the streets every week if necessary."

In Colombia, the news of Floyd's death was bookended by two notorious police killings domestically.

On May 22, 2020 just three days before Floyd's killing a young Black man named Anderson Arboleda was beaten to death by police for allegedly violating coronavirus curfew restrictions. Protesters soon marched to the U.S. embassy in Bogota, moved by the deaths of both Arboleda and Floyd.

Then on September 9, 46-year-old Javier Ordez died after being brutalized in police custody which was caught on video. In the footage, Ordez is heard saying "I am choking" and "Enough, no more, please" as officers kneel on him and use stun guns on him.

The deaths set off months of protests, some of which ended in violent and even deadly police crackdowns.During recent protests in Colombia over inequality and police brutality, local activist groups say at least 43 people have been killed by police. More than 2,900 cases of police brutality have also been reported.

Activists say the cases of Floyd and Ordez inspired people to record incidents with police. And protesters say that even the threat of death isn't stopping them from continuing to challenge police violence and systemic brutality.

"A lot of people tell me, 'Yolanda, don't risk your life by marching in the streets knowing it can put you at risk,'" said Yolanda Perea, a human rights defender in Choc. "But I'll continue to march and defend our lives. Because if we don't unite to defend life, they will continue to crush us more every day."

As the summer of protests blazed through the U.S., Washington, D.C. became a national center for the Black Lives Matter movement. The city created Black Lives Matter Plaza, near the White House, less than two weeks after Floyd's death, and it is now a regular gathering space for protest and activism.

Washington was also the site of the nation's most notorious crackdown on protesters. On June 1, law enforcement used tear gas and riot control tactics to push peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square so that then-President Trump could cross the cleared-out street and pose in front of the vandalized St. John's Church, holding a Bible.

The photo-op and use of force drew condemnation from military officials and even some of Mr. Trump's supporters, who believed it crossed a line.

On August 28, thousands gathered for the 2020 March on Washington at the Lincoln Memorial, with George Floyd's brother Philonise addressing the crowd.

Meanwhile, the local Black Lives Matter chapter started mutual aid initiatives in all eight wards of the city to work to bring about some of the changes that they've yet to see from institutions.

"We have built a stronger community and reimagined a world where we keep us safe and we can build a world without police," Neenee Taylor, the former mass engagement and rapid response coordinator for Black Lives Matter D.C., told CBS News. "And so that's what has changed for our community since George Floyd in D.C. But as far as the government hasn't nothing changed."

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The global impact of George Floyd: How Black Lives Matter protests shaped movements around the world - CBS News

On today's episode of 5 Things:One year ago, our country was at the height of the coronavirus pandemic and in the midst of a racial justice movement unlike anything we'd seen since the 1960s. And, it was Pride month.

Last June, the pandemic and turmoil overpolice brutalityandracial injusticepushed the50th anniversary of Pridein new directions.

The 5 Things team is bringing back our Pride month episode from last year because we think the snapshot it provides still matters for the same reasons.

This episode originally aired on June 14th, 2020.

Hit play on the podcast player above and read along with the transcript below.

Claire Thornton:

Hey, there I'm Claire Thornton, and this is 5 Things. It's Sunday, June 6th. These Sunday episodes are special, we're giving you more from in-depth stories you may have already heard.

Claire Thornton:

A year ago on June 14th, 2020, we aired an episode called "Protest Is The Origin Story For The Pride And Black Lives Matter Movements."We're re-airing that episode today because we think its message still holds true in so many ways. When the episode originally came out last summer, there were protests in all 50 states following the death of George Floyd. Way back then, one year ago, we wanted to show listeners what the Stonewall Inn riot, the event that sparked the modern LGBTQ movement, has in common with the current movement for racial justice. We talked to LGBTQ activists and experts about how Black, queer leaders fought for racial justice. At the same time, they were advancing LGBTQ rights. In the episode, you'll also hear from journalists who were in the thick of covering Black Lives Matter protests last May and June. And you'll hear from some ordinary folks who are asking themselves how they wanted to celebrate Pride last summer at the height of the coronavirus pandemic and amid a racial justice movement unlike anything our country had seen since the 1960s. That's actually where our story begins. Here it is.

Andy Waller:

Pride sort of, kind of isn't going to happen in the conventional way this year. How can Pride still happen? And how can I make it happen?

Claire Thornton:

That's Andy Waller. They're a small business owner in Richmond, Virginia. Each year, they rely on selling their jarred pickles, salsas and jams at Pride events, but that wasn't going to happen this summer, the 50th anniversary of Pride. So Andy decided to organize a virtual Pride for Richmond, and it looks similar to Pride events happening around the world this weekend. I'm Claire Thornton, and this is 5 Things. It's Sunday, June 14th. These Sunday episodes are special. We're giving you more from in depth stories you may have already heard. Today, we're examining how this year's Pride month looks and feels different. Many Pride events are virtual. You'll hear from LGBTQ leaders who tell us how the modern LGBTQ rights movement started with protests against the way police treated their community. As Black Lives Matter fights for racial justice during this Pride month, LGBTQ leaders are shifting their efforts to help support the movement.

Claire Thornton:

On this episode, you'll hear from a Black LGBTQ activist, a faith leader from St John's church, where President Trump posed with the Bible. And you'll hear from LGBTQ pioneer, Karla Jay, who was part of the uprising at Stonewall Inn. They all have something to say about protest, whether it was 1969 or this month. You'll also hear from medical reporter, Liz Szabo, she's been covering how people across the country are getting injured by tactics police use against protestors. We're talking to people in the thick of developing news stories from cities and communities around the country. Tell us what you think about these Sunday episodes by tweeting us at @usatodaypodcast. We want to hear from you, but first here's Andy Waller again.

Andy Waller:

It started out as a little local Pride market with a little fundraising spin. And from there, it's really blossomed into this full on, what feels like an actual full on Pride event, just virtual.

Claire Thornton:

Pride month is going virtual around the world. People are staying home to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Andy Waller's virtual Pride is also giving part of revenues to Black-run nonprofits in Richmond.

Andy Waller:

The most important aspect of this event is the fundraising aspect, the awareness aspect. It's an awareness event to support and promote the visibility of these organizations that are doing has massively important work in the Black and LGBTQ community.

Claire Thornton:

There's a history of the LGBTQ and Black communities connecting. Leaders like Bayard Rustin, Audre Lorde, and Pauli Murray fought for rights where their identities intersected, along lines of race and queerness. Victoria Kirby York is an activist for the Black and LGBTQ communities. She told me how violence from police is at the heart of both the modern LGBTQ movement and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Victoria Kirby York:

There was a hashtag called Existing While Black, and it was highlighting all the times and ways, whether you're talking about a little kid playing with a water gun in the park, being shot by the police within seconds, of Black peoplejust finding joy and having that joy being criminalized. And the same thing happened during Stonewall and afterwards. Whenever queer and trans folks sought to find joy, we were criminalized and punished for it.

Claire Thornton:

Black and brown trans women and other queer people taking a stand against police violence in June of 1969 led to marches. Then those marches became a movement. LGBTQ activist, Karla Jay was there at the Stonewall Inn the night police showed up and a riot broke out.

Karla Jay:

And the police escalated the Stonewall police raid into a riot that lasted for a week and there's such a similarity here today. If the police hadn't been so aggressive, there wouldn't have been a Stonewall uprising. And the same thing here. The police do these things to communities, they act with extreme aggression in situations that really don't call for it and then social change happens.

Claire Thornton:

We've been seeing protests in all 50 statesthe past few weeks in reaction to the death of George Floyd and countless other Black people at the hands of police. That's audio of police deploying tear gas against protesters outside the Iowa Capitol building on May 30th. The forceful clearing of the Lafayette Square Protest on June 1st captured headlines nationally when police used chemical irritants to clear away for President Trump's photo op in front of St. John's church. John Moore is a founder of the Washington Interfaith Network representing St. John's church. His colleagues were helping Black Lives Matter medics when protesters were forcefully cleared out. John told me how he felt when he learned what happened.

John Moore:

They, at that moment, were defined as other, and at that moment, they were the object of police enforcement, being called to get them not to do what otherwise their right to be. There was nobody throwing anything around them. And then suddenly out of the blue came this deluge of the police. I felt like I got punched, even though I'm one of the ones that would not normally have that happen.

Claire Thornton:

This month Moore sayspeople need to educate themselves about discrimination and violence they may have had the privilege of never experiencing.

John Moore:

For those of us that aren't in those communities, we need to be made aware and to think about how to correct it.

Claire Thornton:

Karla Jay says the LGBTQ community needs to do more to help support Black causes, whether they overlap with the queer community or not.

Karla Jay:

Police harassment is long known in many communities of color and in the LGBTQ community. We have this common cause. When the LGBT movement started to work primarily for the benefit of their own community, that was a huge mistake. We need to uplift and work for all of our neighbors, whether or not they are sexually identified in the way we are. We need to ally ourselves with other people. We believed in the late 60s and early 70s that none of us are free until all of us are free.

Claire Thornton:

Victoria Kirby York wants more people to remember that Black, queer women started the Black Lives Matter movement in 2013 and 2014. She's speaking about Alicia Garza and PatrisseCullors, two of the three founders of Black Lives Matter.

Victoria Kirby York:

Our movements have always been intersectional, even if our messaging and our policy asks have not always been. The folks who set up the intersections have always had to fight all fronts in order to achieve full liberation. And that's exactly what we're seeing now.

Claire Thornton:

Medical reporter, Liz Szabo, never covered injuries from rubber bullets before this month. In the past two weeks, she's been talking to protestors, doctors and police officers about injuries from less lethal weapons. She found that 3% of people hit with rubber bullets between 1990 and 2017 died from the injury. And based on the dataavailable, 15% of victims were permanently injured.

Liz Szabo:

Rubber bullets is sort of a catchall name for a wide variety of weapons. A lot of rubber bullets are not just rubber, they actually have metal inside. Some of these rounds are called sponge tipped rounds or foam rounds. Again, those names make it sound like you're hitting someone with a party favor. It's not crazy foam. These things are very hard. And what really surprised me the most when I started looking into this for the first time is that they can kill you, they're even worse than getting stabbed in the eye as inconceivable as that is or even shot in the eye.

Claire Thornton:

What did police instructors say about how officers are taught to use rubber bullets?

Liz Szabo:

Police are told explicitly on their first day of training, never aim at the head. If you're aiming at the head, it basically is becoming lethal force. It's no longer a less lethal force. All of the instructors I talked to said, people should never, ever, ever aim at the head. You should only aim at the legs. Paramount, also, you're not supposed to hit peaceful protestors. What's interesting really is just how often they were used just recently, because really police tell me that cops have been very reluctant to use rubber bullets or similar projectiles. I'm using that a catch all term. But really cops don't use rubber bullets all that often. They certainly use them in enormous numbers over the last two weeks so I'm not sure what brought about that change.

Claire Thornton:

Taking to the streets is a big part of both these movements. USA TODAYwill keep examining that risk and you can read more on less lethal force from Liz's story throughout this week. For some people getting onto the streets to March in solidarity is not an option. Disabled people, people more vulnerable to COVID and even people who aren't out as LGBTQ can attend virtual Prides this year. Victoria Kirby York says that's a big deal.

Victoria Kirby York:

There are some people who could have never physically joined a Pride are going to be able to join online even if it's just under the covers in their room.

Claire Thornton:

Access is an important part of Andy Waller's Richmond virtual Pride too.

Andy Waller:

Pride should be for everybody, like Pride should be for every LGBTQ person. Our kind of motto for this is you don't have to come out to show up.

Claire Thornton:

You can check out stories about Pride month, the Black Lives Matter movement and police brutality at the links in the episode notes. Some of the stories are from one year ago, they give a snapshot of what our country was facing last summer, and the facts, statistics, and history in those stories still carries the same weight. If you liked this episode of 5 Things, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. I want to thank Shannon Green for her help editing this show. Thanks for listening. I'm Claire Thornton. Taylor Wilson will be back tomorrow morning with 5 Things You Need To Know For Monday.

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Protest is the origin story for Pride and Black Lives Matter movements: 5 Things podcast - USA TODAY