The Origins and Impact of Black Lives Matter

The second page provides a concise overview of the Black Lives Matter movement, its origins, and its significant impact on society.

The presentation begins by recounting the tragic event that brought Black Lives Matter to global prominence in 2020: the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. This incident sparked widespread protests and renewed focus on the movement.

Example: The murder of George Floyd, where a police officer pressed his knee into Floyd's neck for several minutes despite his pleas, exemplifies the type of police brutality that the Black Lives Matter movement aims to address.

The document highlights the massive scale of the protests that followed, with an estimated 15 to 26 million people participating in the United States alone. This made it one of the largest movements in US history and led to Black Lives Matter becoming one of the most shared hashtags on social media in 2020.

Highlight: The 2020 Black Lives Matter protests were among the largest in US history, demonstrating the movement's widespread support and impact.

The presentation then traces the movement's origins back to 2013, when the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter first emerged on social media. This was in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin, an African-American teenager, in February 2012.

Definition: Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation is described as a global organization operating in the US, UK, and Canada, with a mission to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities.

The document effectively outlines the movement's growth from a social media hashtag to a powerful global force for change, highlighting its ongoing relevance and importance in the fight against racial injustice.

Vocabulary: White supremacy refers to the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and should therefore dominate society.