Movements and bases cannot be cliques of people who already know each other. [20] The movement and Garza are credited for popularizing the use of social media for mass mobilization in the United States; a practice called "mediated mobilization". "What I know from this last four years is that Trump and his administration is not only not good for black people, but it's not good for our movements." #BlackLivesMatter co-creator Alicia Garza discusses how her political participation has changed during the COVID-19 pandemic and shares tips for dealing with coronavirus-related stress and anxiety. But that means weve got to get serious about building power. Who created it? Schnall: In 2020, we faced one challenge after another, all in the background of a global pandemic and ongoing instances of police violence against unarmed Black Americans. [63], In 2020, Garza also was number 32 on Fast Company's Queer 50 list. Garza reflects on a lifetime of activism in this 2018 interview with our editor-in-chief. [] Yes all lives, all contributions. This is bigger than all that. There are so many people out there who are looking around them and asking, How did we get here, and what can I do about it? I hope this book helps you answer that question by learning a bit about my own journey as an organizer, how I found the movement and what I've learned (and unlearned) along the way. The success of initiatives such as Alicia Garza's Black Census Project the largest national survey focusing on U.S. black lives in over 150 years and Patrisse Cullor's launch of the grassroots effort Dignity and Power Now in support of incarcerated people, both exemplify the BLM movement's continued impact, particularly in local communities. She has served as a board member of Forward Together's Oakland branch, Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity, and Oakland's School of Unity and Liberation/SOUL. President Obama's legacy was mixed in this regard, and Black communities really felt that. These roots are what Garza inscribed on her skin. Garza was named one of the 100 Women We Love named by GO Magazine in 2018 Alicia Garza was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on April 2, 2018. I think the same is true today. This project was the largest survey on Black People since the Reconstruction era of the United States. They use us for photo ops. //]]>, The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart, Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019. The co-founder of Black Lives Matter recalls the coffee-making that kickstarted her activism Read an interview with Alicia Garza here Alicia Garza: 'Something about the demand to drop. She is also the co-creator of #BlackLivesMatter, an international movement and organizing project focused on combatting anti-black state-sanctioned violence. })(); "//securepubads.g.doubleclick.net/tag/js/gpt.js"; Author, political strategist and organizer Alicia Garza will serve as keynote speaker at UC San Diego's Commencement 2021 ceremonies, which will be held June 12-13. So of course there are going to be blind spots. Garza uses the phrase "Black Lives Matter," a term she helped coin, to lift up the Black community all across the world. Join them. Activist Ai-jen Poo, Black Lives Matter co-founder Alicia Garza and Planned Parenthood past president Cecile Richards have joined forces to launch Supermajority, which aims to train 2 million women in the United [], Cross-posted from TEDWomen curator Pat Mitchells blog on the Huffington Post. Garza was born on January 4, 1981, in Los Angeles, California. The phrase went viral via social media and spawned a movement. Cullors then put Garzas Facebook post on Twitter, with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. } She was also struck by the similarities of Trayvon Martin to her younger brother, Joey, feeling that Joey could have been killed instead. return cookiePair[1]; The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart by Alicia Garza. This is an ode to black women because black women are magic. She was convicted in the murder of a police officer in a May 1973 shootout on the New Jersey. googletag.pubads().setTargeting("grsession", "osid.b641826f3144ccf1f4f854bd7897b2d1"); Last years list was published just as millions joined the protests across the country, calls to defund the police gained mainstream attention, and companies faced increased pressure to address racial inequities. Cullors shared this with the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. While shes been dedicated to the racial justice movement for years, her work has taken on a new level of prominence in the last 12 months, since she debuted at number 32 on, The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart. var source = getCookieWithoutJQuery("source"); All rights reserved. window.Mobvious.device_type = 'mobile'; }; When George Zimmerman was infamously acquitted in July 2013, in the murder case of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, activist Alicia Garza famously wrote on Facebook: "The sad part is, there's a section of America who is cheering and celebrating right now. gads.src = (useSSL ? . Which travel companies promote harmful wildlife activities? [20] In particular, the movement was born and Garza's post became popularized after protests emerged in Ferguson, Missouri, following the death of Michael Brown. googletag.enableServices(); [59], In 2018 Garza was named in the inaugural cohort of the Atlantic Fellows for Racial Equity (AFRE). I think that's true of a lot of us. var url; To address her frustration with Americas centuries-long dismissal of black peoples needs and wants, Garza is leading the Black Census Project, the largest survey of black peoples needs in America thats been done since the Reconstruction era. } url = "https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/mobile/phone_hd_images-2b89833762f600506d44865a33582d11.css"; In our communities, we have many different kinds of people, from many different backgrounds and experiences, with different skills and talents. Schnall: We have just been through a very disheartening election. and that makes me sick to my stomach. init: function() { Alicia Garza. Black people. This movement crosses so many others, which shows that we can build new kinds of communities where everybody can belong, and where everyone can be valued and where everybody can be powerful. Their colleague and friend, Opal Tometi, then built the sites that these three women were able to use to ensure that people could connect online about the injustice of Martins murder (and Michael Browns and others) and take action together offline. I mean, things are bonkers. Daniel Garza. g.parentNode.insertBefore(A, g) [10], On March 28, 2018, Garza announced via her Instagram page, "I wish this was a better update. With that being said, I also often think about what and who is missing from the community of change that we need. a[a9] = { "[51] She voted for Bernie Sanders in the California Democratic Primary, but promised to do everything in her power "to make sure that we are not led by Donald Trump", and she voted for Clinton in the general election. Garza says in the 2016 YBCA 100 Summit, a twenty minute interview turned into a four hour conversation, I remember leaving there and saying 'I met my soulmate. She wanted to make contraception available in nurses' offices throughout her school district in Marin County, Calif., during a national conversation around family values that former President Ronald Reagan ushered in with the Moral Majority. } catch (err) { Eco-friendly burial alternatives, explained. "[15], She advocated for increasing funding for accessible public housing and maintenance, in order to assist homeowners in moving underground power lines. She has been twice honored by the Harvey Milk Democratic Club with the Bayard Rustin Community Activist Award for her work fighting racism and gentrification in San Francisco. var cookies = document.cookie.split('; '); To create equity, we have to look at the rules that promote inequity in these companies and sectors, and the practices that support and enforce those rules. When the nearby work committee pulled their assistance in the action against Walmart, PUEBLO was unable to win. She is a principal of this really cool organization called Black Futures Lab, which is a kind of think tank. Garza: When I think about how to make change, I often think about all the components necessary to create communities. // page settings googletag.pubads().setTargeting("surface", "mw"); "Events.Namespace": "csa", } And if not, what are we going to do to close the gap there? The president of this country said that Black Lives Matter was a symbol of hate. I would say that that's a big threat. Black Lives Matters mission, as stated on its website, is to build local power and to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes.. Schnall: There is glaring inequity in terms of Black womens representation across sectors and industries. Social vs. medical egg freezing: Whats the difference? Cullors set up BLM with Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi back in 2013. [Garza challenges] a nation that has failed to live up to its stated belief that 'all men are created equal. googletag.cmd.push(function() { //