Black Lives Matter campaigners

[RattusRattus]

I am a little confused as to why these guys are demonstrating. There seems to be no obvious catalyst - i.e. in response to a recent example of police racial prejudice. Also isn't BLM an American organisation? It just seems like they are making a point for the sake of it rather than getting themselves heard in a more constructive way. Also, IMO all lives matter, so equality should be the same whatever race you are. I can't really see how are they going to do much more than annoy people by blocking roads.

I know this post will make no sense as I'm very angry after reading this thread.

I took part in a BLM rally this weekend in Glasgow, I am not a terrorist. I am in fact a white Scottish mother of two.

Police Scotland have shown that black lives DON'T matter when they allowed a known racist and violent police officer to patrol the streets.
They have shown black lives DON'T matter when they gave a false description of a man to the press after he died in custody.
They have shown black lives DON'T matter when they gave a false statement to press saying the man in question had a machete.
They have shown black lives DON'T matter when police refused to give statements to PIRC regarding the events of the morning my friend was killed.
The black of coverage in the national press has shown that black lives DON'T matter.

I could go one but I'm not sure what the point is considering so many mumsnetters are convinced there isn't a problem in the UK.

Sheku Bayoh died in May 2015, only last week was a report submitted to the Lord Advocate.

His partner and his two young sons still do not know why or how Sheku died.

But nope, no problems here.

Violet, it's shocking that there are people with votes in the western world as apparently unable to critically interrogate a few basic statistics as you seem to be.

I'm not going to bother double checking the 50% figure you give as the exact figure isn't the point. The point is that crimes reported, crimes recorded and crimes actually occurring are three different figures. Can you really not see that?

Just5minswithDacre I'm well aware what the dark figure of crime is, and that separate figures are needed for each, thank you.

My issue with BLM, is they are suspiciously silent when a person of colour murders another person of colour. If they truly believe their name, "Black Lives Matter", why do black lives only matter when the perpetrator is white?

Just a little known fact, but in the last 2 years, over 1,400 more black Americans have murdered other black people, than were lynched from 1882 to 1968.

Don't those Black Lives Matter?

Why is everyone meant to get on board with the BLM message, when in the USA, they don't even care about each other's lives?

Does nobody have an opinion on the BLM acts committed in Milwaukee?
Dragging white people from cars, inciting each other to beat them, screaming "Black Power", setting a gas station alight, and calling for police to be shot?

Or is it just the statistics I provided you have a problem with?

Violet, I have an opinion. The acts of a few do not define a whole movement.

Would you prefer if I kept quiet and stopped saying the name Sheku Bayoh? Should we accept no answers because of how people in Milwaukee have behaved? Genuine question.

You're assuming those people are representative of the BLM campaign and acting on the direction of the campaign when there is no evidence they are.

In times of high public emotion (such as after the shooting of an individual by Police), you will always find some people getting involved in a protest who are just up for a public fight and really aren't that concerned about the issues.

They want a fight and it's particularly exciting when it's a fight with the Police and you come from a community who have historically been treated badly by the Police. People wanting to beat up white people just because they're white are not representative of the BLM movement.

I have experienced several protests and movements in my city in the UK which began with good intentions by people peacefully protesting with genuine understanding of the issues which were taken over by violent individuals seeking the thrill of a riot or a ruck with the Police.

I'm not in London but my city (among others) had riots after the Mark Duggan shooting. The majority of the people destroying public property, being abusive and violent to the Police and looting shops really didn't give a shit about Mark Duggan - it was just an opportunity to exhibit antisocial and violent behaviour with other like minded people. I had contact with many of these people after the event in my professional role and was told by many that they didn't really know why it was happening but saw a heavy Police presence and people 'kicking off" so joined in.

Possibly inflammatory protests always attract a number of people who are just looking for a scrap. You can't dismiss an entire social movement with good grounds to question government policy and the criminal justice system because some idiots have been idiots.

But it's always used by non - critical thinkers to ignore the real issues and blame the original protest movement. Happened with the Brixton riots (and others) in the 80s,.The Rodney King riots, Katrina looting etc and many, many more - oh but look - all these people from ethnic minorities are just violent and thieves and racist and they want to kill us!. See, this proves what this race is like! (implication being that the increased rates of arrest, conviction and killing of people of colour by the criminal justice system is necessary).

And SO many people including you fall for it.

Whenever an act of terror or mass violent acts are committed 'in the name of' something, be it Islam, Christianity, anything- people do hope that the major influences will step up, denounce the act, and say "Not in my/my religion's name".

BLM are silent. Calls for dead Pigs now, people being dragged from cars and beaten, buildings and businesses being set alight, and BLM are silent.

Which perhaps is to be expected, from an organisation which cites convicted Cop Killer and prison escapee Assata Shakur as it's major influence.

I do not need or expect major influences for any organisation, religion or race to denounce the actions of others. I am not an idiot, I know those actions of one person/group of people are not a representative of everyone.

Violet, I've already said I have been a part of BLM. Am I terrorist in your eyes?

Violet I confess I hadn't heard about Assata Shakur's supposed influence on BLM, so have been doing some reading around the issue

Disturbing

JSFB no. I do not think you are a terrorist.

But I do believe BLM as an organisation isn't honorable or even honest in its' true intentions, and that they are doing more harm than good long term.

In a similar way, ISIS claim to be carrying out their atrocities in Allah's name, and I bet the vast majority of regular Muslims wouldn't want to be associated with them in any way.

Puzzled the deeper you dig, the more you will be i think. I was unsure whether to even post on this because I didn't want to be accused of being inflammatory or a tinfoil hat conspiracy nut but the foundations and the people who both influence and financially support BLM, does make disturbing reading.

Mmm, I don't follow football but just heard that an ex-footballer died after having been taisered by the police. How did I know he was black?

atenco, because police would consciously or sub consciously give a white guy the benefit of doubt before reaching for the taser. The black guy is somehow dangerous, because he is black.

I agree, Calippo! But considering the OP and some other contributors don't see the relevance of the BLM movement in the UK...

police would consciously or sub consciously give a white guy the benefit of doubt before reaching for the taser

Don't you mean some police, Calippo?

You see, this is what I find odd: the insistence that it's wrong to speak of a "chosen group" as a block, while apparently considering it okay to do so for those less favoured