Black Lives Matter Protests
Effective Organizing leads to Underhanded 

The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement began in 2013 after the acquittal of George Zimmerman, who killed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida. What started as a hashtag quickly became a global call to action against police violence and systemic racism. As the years passed, more names became rallying cries: Michael Brown (Ferguson, MO), Eric Garner (New York, NY), Tamir Rice (Cleveland, OH), Freddie Gray (Baltimore, MD), Sandra Bland (Waller County, TX), Philando Castile (Falcon Heights, MN), Alton Sterling (Baton Rouge, LA), Botham Jean (Dallas, TX), Atatiana Jefferson (Fort Worth, TX), Breonna Taylor (Louisville, KY), and Ahmaud Arbery (Brunswick, GA).

The movement reached a breaking point on May 25, 2020, when George Floyd was murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who knelt on his neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds while Floyd pleaded, “I can’t breathe.” The video, recorded by a bystander, ignited the largest civil rights protests in U.S. history, spanning all 50 states and dozens of countries worldwide.

Yet as the movement gained traction, its momentum was strategically undermined. In Minneapolis, during peaceful protests shortly after Floyd’s death, a masked figure dressed in all black—later nicknamed “Umbrella Man”—was caught on camera methodically smashing windows at an AutoZone. Investigators later tied him to white supremacist groups attempting to incite violence and derail the protests’ message. Following such acts of sabotage, isolated incidents of property damage and looting were heavily covered by national media—far more than the peaceful marches.

As a result, coverage of the protests began to shift. Rather than highlighting the mass outcry for justice and reform, networks and politicians began referring to protesters as “rioters and looters.” This mischaracterization not only diverted attention from the message of the movement but also gave ammunition to critics and law enforcement to crack down on demonstrators with militarized force.

Despite this, Black Lives Matter left an indelible mark on global consciousness. It forced institutions, corporations, and governments to confront their role in systemic racism. But the story of how a peaceful and powerful movement was deliberately distorted serves as a reminder: the fight for justice is not only about speaking truth, but also about defending it from those who seek to silence or twist it.

Despite this, Black Lives Matter left an indelible mark on global consciousness. It forced institutions, corporations, and governments to confront their role in systemic racism. But the story of how a peaceful and powerful movement was deliberately distorted serves as a reminder: the fight for justice is not only about speaking truth, but also about defending it from those who seek to silence or twist it.