Black Lives Matter (BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement that seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and racial inequality experienced by black people, and promote anti-racism. Its primary concerns are incidents of police brutality and racially motivated violence against black people. It started following the killings of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Rekia Boyd, among others. The movement and its related organizations typically advocate for various policy changes considered to be related to black liberation. While there are specific organizations that label themselves simply as "Black Lives Matter," such as the Black Lives Matter Global Network, the overall movement is a decentralized network of people and organizations with no formal hierarchy. The slogan "Black Lives Matter" itself remains untrademarked by any group. Despite being characterized by some as a violent movement, the overwhelming majority of its public demonstrations have been peaceful.
The George Floyd protests were a series of police brutality protests that began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of international reactions to the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man, during an arrest. Derek Chauvin, a Minneapolis Police Department officer, knelt on Floyd's neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds as three other officers looked on and prevented passers-by from intervening. Chauvin and the other three officers involved were later arrested. In April 2021, Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. In June 2021, Chauvin was sentenced to 22+1⁄2 years in prison.
The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil disturbances that initially started in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota, United States, before spreading nationwide. In Columbus, Ohio, unrest began on May 28, 2020, two days after incidents began in Minneapolis. The events were a reaction to the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) officer Derek Chauvin, who knelt on Floyd's neck for over nine minutes, asphyxiating him.
This is a list of George Floyd protests in Hawaii. Following the murder of George Floyd, protests spread from Minneapolis to other parts of the United States, including Hawaii. Protests broke out in Honolulu on the night of May 30 and spread to over four other cities over the following days.
This is a list of protests brought on by the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in Kentucky, United States. In 2020, there were protests throughout Kentucky in reaction to the shooting of Breonna Taylor and murder of George Floyd by police, as well as the shooting of David McAtee by the Kentucky Army National Guard. The demonstrations happened regularly in the largest cities in Kentucky, including Louisville and Lexington. Many of the smaller cities had protests on at least one day.
This is a list of George Floyd protests in the U.S. state of Maine.
This is a list of protests and unrests in the US state of Nebraska related to the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020.
Following the murder of George Floyd, an unarmed black man in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 25, 2020, protests erupted around the nation and world. Dozens of protests, several involving thousands of protesters have been held in New Jersey. Unlike in other areas of the country, protests have been mainly peaceful. This is attributed to relatively good community-police relations, memories of the race riots of 1967, and activist leadership maintaining focus on systemic racism. After protests in Trenton and Atlantic City grew violent on May 31, curfews were set for the first time. Residents of Atlantic City helped clean up damage after the protests turned destructive.
Black Visions Collective (BLVC) is an American nonprofit organization for black liberation based in Minnesota, founded in December 2017. The group intersects with transgender and LGBTQ communities. Active in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, BLVC has been involved in Black Lives Matter protests. It has lobbied for part of the Minneapolis Police Department budget to be diverted to programs that support people experiencing youth homelessness, opioid dependency, and mental health issues.
Individuals and organizations throughout the United States and the world have responded to the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent protests and riots.
Protests were held across the United Kingdom following the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American man, by police officers while under arrest in the United States on 25 May 2020. Immediately following his murder, protests and riots occurred in dozens of cities across the United States. Protests were staged internationally for the first time on 28 May, with a solidarity demonstration outside the United States Embassy in London. They took place during the UK COVID-19 pandemic.
Shortly after protests seeking justice for George Floyd, an African-American who was murdered during a police arrest, began in the United States, people in Canada protested to show solidarity with Americans and to demonstrate against issues with police or racism in Canada. Vigils and protests of up to thousands of participants took place in all 10 provinces and all 3 territories of Canada.
Shortly after protests seeking justice for George Floyd, an African American who was murdered during a police arrest, began in the United States, the people of Italy also began to protest to show solidarity with the Americans.
Rhea W. Boyd is an American pediatrician and child and community health advocate. Boyd is a popular science communicator, making use of social media to amplify a diverse range of voices in an effort to improve the heath of communities of colour.
Rebekah D. Fenton is an American pediatrician and adolescent health advocate. Fenton is an Adolescent Medicine Fellow in The Potocsnak Family Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at Lurie Children's Hospital at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois. Fenton's clinical work is centered around providing healthcare for marginalized youth populations with a focus on cultural humility and health equity. After the police murder of George Floyd, Fenton provided medical care to protestors and has created virtual grieving spaces for Black and brown people in her medical community. As an avid writer, Fenton uses writing as a platform for advocacy to communicate topics such as public health, adolescent medicine, and diversity in medicine.
The Strike for Black Lives was a mass walkout that occurred throughout the United States on July 20, 2020. Occurring during the George Floyd protests, the main goals of the strike were to draw attention to systemic racism and racial inequality in the United States, with additional goals including a raising of the minimum wage in the United States, stronger protections for unionizing, and expanded healthcare.
A wave of civil unrest in the United States, initially triggered by the murder of George Floyd during his arrest by Minneapolis police officers on May 25, 2020, led to protests and riots against systemic racism in the United States, such as in the form of police violence and other forms of violence. Since then, numerous other incidents of police brutality have drawn continued attention and unrest in various parts of the country.
Many artworks related to the Black Lives Matter movement were created in Portland, Oregon, United States, during local protests over the murder of George Floyd and other Black Americans. Oregon Arts Watch contextualized the artistic works, stating that a "whitewashed pre-COVID lens" on American life, which obscured systemic racism, had been "cracked", and describing artists' response to racial violence being brought into the public eye was a "marathon, not a sprint".
This is a list of protests that took place in San Diego County, California following the murder of George Floyd that took place on May 25, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, after police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds. These events were created to fight for justice for George Floyd and other Black community members who suffer from Police brutality. These demonstrations have resulted in a few policy changes, namely the ban of the cartoid neck restraints use in San Diego County and a city-wide independent review board that would review police practices.
