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Tamika Palmer, the mother of Breonna Taylor, blasted the Black Lives Matter movement in Louisville, Kentucky in a since-removed Facebook post.

I have never personally dealt with BLM Louisville and personally have found them to be fraud [sic], Ms Palmer wrote on Wednesday. A screenshot of the post was later published by a local media show.

A screenshot captured by WAVE 3 News shows a since-removed Facebook post by Tamika Palmer, the mother of Breonna Taylor

(WAVE 3 News)

She called Kentucky statehouse representative Attica Scott another fraud.

Ms Palmer gave credit to family, friends and local activists for supporting her family after the death of her daughter. Ms Taylor, who was 26, died following a police shooting in her home during the execution of a no-knock warrant.

Ms Scott has pushed for a ban on no-knock warrants since Ms Taylors death.

Ms Palmer said local activist Christopher 2x and other supporters had never needed recognition.

I could walk in a room full of people who claim to be here for Breonnas family who don't even know who I am, she added.

She criticised people who have raised money for Ms Taylor's family without knowing them, writing: Ive watched yall raise money on behalf of Breonnas family who has never done a damn thing for us nor have we needed it or asked so Talk about fraud.

Its amazing how many people have lost focus Smdh. Im a say this before I go Im so sick of some of yall and I was last anybody who needs it Im with this enough is enough!!

Ms Taylor died after being shot six times as police returned fire after her boyfriend Kenneth Walker discharged his weapon, hitting one of the officers, as they used a battering ram to enter the apartment.

Two of the three officers who used their guns have been fired, with one remaining on the job. None of the officers have been charged in the death of Ms Taylor, but one of them is facing charges for wanton endangerment in respect of bullets that entered another apartment.

Sgt Jonathan Mattingly, who remains on the police force, is writing a book about the event and its aftermath to be published by Post Hill Press.

The Independent has reached out to BLM Louisville and Representative Attica Scott for comment.

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Breonna Taylors mother blasts Black Lives Matter movement - The Independent

One thing is for sure, two things are for certain: Spotifys Jemele Hill Is Unbothered isnt always what we expect, but its always a treat.

On the latest episode, the award-winning journalist chops it up with Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza, who dishes on her new book, The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart; her decision to distance herself from BLM and start her own organization, Black Futures Lab; and the tricky relationship between celebrity and activism.

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In addressing her decision to leave BLM, Garza noted that the sheer magnitude of the movement restricted her ability to exist freely while associated with it.

I didnt want to be the Black Lives Matter lady for the rest of my life, she says. To be honest, I have a lot of other talents. I have a lot of other skills. I have a lot more to offer and, you know, Im not Black Lives Matter. That is something that I helped to create, but I am like the smallest piece of it. And I just kept feeling like the longer Im here, the more it becomes about me and Patrisse and Opal and less about what it is that were trying to do out in the world.

Aside from her work with BLM, the 2020 The Root 100 honoree directs Special Projects for the National Domestic Workers Alliance and remains committed to empowering the Black community through the Black Futures Lab, which works with Black people to transform our communities, building Black political power and changing the way that power operates.

Garza also touched on the complications of doing this type of work while also juggling the increased popularity that often comes with it.

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Theres something that happens when a movement starts to become a brand, too. And I think this summer was the worst part of it, to be honest, she says. I couldnt turn on the television without seeing Black Lives Matter. Whether it was Netflix, Comcast, Real Housewives of Atlanta; it was just a lot, right? So I get it. And I also dont know how movements become effective if theyre not well-resourced. So thats the question for me.

She continued, I think theres also a dynamic here where so many families throughout this countrywho have had a loved one stolen from them through no fault of their own[...] are still dealing with the loss of a loved one. [Theyre] still fighting, and waiting, and pushing for justice. I can understand their frustration, too. Like, Why is my childs story not the thing that everyone is talking about? Why is it Black Lives Matter?

With Garza being acutely aware of how that delicate balance works, her insight and opinions on these matters hold tremendous weight. Hit up Spotify to check out the rest of this episode of Jemele Hill Is Unbothered, where Garza also shares her thoughts on respectability politics and if shed be open to one day running for public office.

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Alicia Garza Discusses Leaving Black Lives Matter, the Complications of Balancing Activism and Branding on Jemele Hill Is Unbothered - Yahoo Lifestyle

Brian Amadi, Precious Familusi and Raven Khadeja are the founders of Black Lives Matter N.L. (CBC )

After the murderofGeorge Floyd, Precious Familusi, Brian Amadi and Raven Khadeja started talking back and forth in Facebook messages.

"It was a time where we saw a lot of people rallying and we decided this was a time to talk about racism here in Newfoundland," said Precious Familusi."People in Newfoundland are really friendly but this doesn't mean that racism doesn't exist."

Those initial Facebook messages became the start of Black Lives Matter N.L., which Familusi, Khadejaand Amadico-founded in June 2020.

Amadi is quick to point out that the organization is more than just an activist group against racism.

"Black Lives Matterdoesn't just mean stopping racism because stopping racism doesn't do much for Black lives that are already suffering from the effects of racism," Amadi said.

For our latest segment of Being Black in N.L., host Ife Alabaspeaks withAmadi, Familusiand Khadejaabout their organization, the importance of having open and honest conversations about racism,and the need for anti-racism education.

WATCH | See Ife Alaba's interview with Black Lives Matter N.L.:

You may already be familiar with Ife Alaba she's one of the charismatichosts ofCBC Newfoundland and Labrador's series Stuffed.

Alaba is host and producer of our Being Black in N.L. segment where she chats with members of theBlack community about their lives,businesses and passions.

Watch out for more Being Black in N.L. right here, on our social media channels and on Here & Now.

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of.You can read more stories here.

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An open conversation about racism: Meet the founders of Black Lives Matters N.L. - CBC.ca

Cloe Poisson :: CTMirror.org

A protestor holds a Black Lives Matter sign at the start of a protest march at Keney Park to protest the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis.

My life and every other black life matters.

This is every black persons motto in the United States of America. In the past few months, weve seen an increase in deaths among the Black community. Besides COVID-19 disproportionately affecting this community, resulting in many deaths, so has police brutality. Racism is a public health crisis.

The recent killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and now Daunte Wright of Minnesota help reveal the sad truth about how devalued lives of people of color are in the United States. People worldwide are now finally having open discussions about what racism looks like and how it is disproportionately affecting their communities in their day-to-day lives. We are starting to finally hold officers accountable for their actions and speak out against these reoccurring injustices.

Every day, it seems as if another killing or shooting results in the death of another black man. On Sunday, April 11, 2021, 20-year-old Duante Wright was shot and killed after the traffic stop in Minnesota, miles away from where George Floyd was murdered. The shooting was just recently ruled as a homicide, but is claimed to be accidental. Many Black Americans, including me, want to see the officer responsible for this young Black mans death held accountable.

It is no secret that people continue to suffer daily from the trauma we see, such as the deaths of our brothers and sisters at the hands of the police, the people who take a vow to protect us. Black people are not viewed as humans in this society. This is the reality: Black men are afraid of the police. We are scared that if we get pulled over, our lives will be put at stake, and we can be brutally murdered at any given time, regardless of the environment.

To continuously mourn the loss of a Black life every day is draining. We were put on this earth to be conscientious members of society, not to be eternally oppressed.

Today, and every day: Black Americans such as I will continue to say that our lives matter.

Eugene Bertrand is a student at Eastern Connecticut State University.

CTViewpoints welcomes rebuttal or opposing views to this and all its commentaries. Read our guidelines andsubmit your commentary here.

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Opinion My life and every other Black life matters - The CT Mirror

From the start, the founders of Black Lives Matter have always put LGBTQ voices at the center of the conversation. The movement was founded by three Black women, Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi, two of whom identify as queer.

By design, the movement they started in 2013 has remained organic, grassroots and diffuse. Since then, many of the largest Black Lives Matter protests have been fueled by the violence against Black men, including Mike Brown and Eric Garner in 2015, and now George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery.

But it's not only straight, cisgender Black men who are dying at the hands of police. Last month, a Black transgender man, Tony McDade, 38, was shot and killed by police in Tallahassee.

Andy Jean, a costume designer, celebrates Black Trans Lives at the Juneteenth Jubilee in Harlem. "It was powerful to receive that love from our community. We fight and celebrate our freedom each and everyday," Jean said.

On June 9, two Black transgender women, Riah Milton and Dominique "Rem'mie" Fells, also were killed in separate acts of violence, their killings believed to be the 13th and 14th of transgender or gender-non-conforming people this year, according to the Human Rights Coalition.

And in 2019, Layleen Polanco, a trans Latina woman who was an active member of New Yorks Ballroom community, died while in solitary confinement at Rikers Island jail.

"We are a prime target because of our Blackness, and our intersectionality of being trans adds an extra target on our backs," said Jonovia Chase, co-lead organizer of House Lives Matter, a community organization composed of sexual- and gender-minority people of color.

Chase said that although Black Lives Matter was "created by queer folks, [cisgender] privilege has taken precedent over gay and transgender people."

While Chase and other LGBTQ advocates of color clearly condemn the deaths of George Floyd, Amaud Arbuery and countless other cisgender Black men, they're also quick to call attention to other acts of violence against Black LBGTQ people that garner less national media attention.

Jonovia Chase, center, honors native land in an opening ceremony led by Graciela Tibiaquira at the Juneteenth Jubilee.

They often point to Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, a trans woman of color, who helped kickstart the LGBTQ rights movement following the Stonewall uprising of the 1960s only to watch as many hard-fought rights and privileges benefited white gay men and women but weren't extended to people like them.

"It's another example about how the Black queer community has been in the forefront leading, however, we're not being seen or heard or valued," Chase added.

However, organizers say there are clear signs times are changing, and that Black LGBTQ voices are increasingly taking center stage in nationwide conversations about race, discrimination and police violence.

In recent weeks, people have turned out in never-before-seen numbers to support the LGBTQ community of color -- and especially Black transgender people.

Last week in Brooklyn, an estimated 15,000 people turned out for a demonstration called The Black Trans Lives Matter rally, aka "Brooklyn Liberation," making it one of the largest transgender-focused protests in history, according to the organizers.

Protesters stand in solidarity with transgender people at the Juneteenth Jubilee in Harlem.

In Los Angeles, tens of thousands more gathered in Hollywood for the All Black Lives Matter protest, intended to be inclusive and centered on LGBTQ members of BLM.

And on Juneteenth, to celebrate the day the last enslaved people were informed of their freedom, celebrations across the country sought "intersectional" celebrations of the Black experience in the United States

In Harlem, in New York City, hundreds gathered for a massive celebration of music and art intended to "lift up and center Black Queer and Trans folks" in an event co-organized by The Blacksmiths, Intersectional Voices Collective and the Wide Awakes.

"More people are also becoming educated and intentional at this moment," said Niama Safia Sandy, who's on the steering committee of The Blacksmiths, a coalition of artists, curators, culture producers and organizers committed to Black liberation and equality.

"It is just not possible to turn a blind eye away from these things any more," Sandy said.

Dancers gather at St. Nicholas park in Harlem for the Juneteenth Jubilee.

Clad in face masks and handing out hand sanitizer, hundreds turned out to dance, sing and march along historic Black landmarks on a hot day Harlem.

Eventually, the parade-like crowd landed at St. Nicholas Park, where members of New York City's ballroom community greeted protestors with elaborate voguing performances, a dancing style born in the queer ballroom scene that has since been popularized by Madonna, Rihanna and Ariana Grande.

"It's rare that we get opportunities to come together as a Black community and specifically center the trans and queer community," said Chase, who helped organize the Juneteenth celebration in Harlem.

During one performance, model and poet Linda LaBeija, a member of the House Ballroom community, read a spoken-word poem called, "Vogue, bitch," to a thunderous crowd of more than 300 people.

"How many of those beacons of light must we lose along the way?" LaBeija asked the crowd, referring to the Black trans women who have been the victims of violence.

Cotton Juicy Couture performs a stylized dance called 'voguging' for those gathered for the Juneteenth Jubilee at St. Nicholas park in Harlem. "It was so fun and liberating to finally vogue in front of a crowd after [social distancing] for a long time," he said.

And as Black Lives Matter protesters continue to remember George Floyd and others killed at the hands of police, LaBeija asked, "Are you including Black trans women in that list of Black names?"

As a Black transgender woman, Deja Smith said she's learned the hard way how difficult life can be for people like her in the United States.

"It has been a struggle most of the way here," said Smith, a founding member of the Intersectional Voices Collective and director of makeup artistry for DDPRO.

"But over the last three to five years things have started to ease up, leading to this moment today where I just thought I would never see a crowd of Black, queer and trans people of like minds, getting along, and speaking to our ancestry."

Smith credits the founders of Black Lives Matter for creating space for LGBTQ voices from the start.

"It has always been part of their cultural movement," she said.

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From the start, Black Lives Matter has been about LGBTQ lives ...