This assignment examines one of two social movements Black Lives Matter. Trace how the movement began, Discuss how this movement is different from past movements that challenged simi

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Black Lives Matter Mildred Delozia, Alabama A&M University and Charles M. S. Birore, Norfolk State University

https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.013.1512

Published online: 20 April 2022

Summary Black Lives Matter (BLM), which led to the Black Lives Matter movement (BLMM), has been described as a movement with a global following. The movement is aligned with the social work profession’s purpose and values. The social work profession is a human rights profession and has a history of involvement with movements, beginning with the settlement house movement in the late 19th century. The BLMM frames its narrative based on human rights and espouses an agenda that calls out injustice in all facets of social justice. Therefore, a central aim is to understand the BLMM from multiple perspectives. Definitions, theoretical perspectives, and types of social movements are presented, and then the framework of social movements is used to understand the BLMM. Finally, the BLMM is examined in relation to historical social movements, advocacy organizations, and criminal justice reform.

Keywords: African Americans, Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter movement, Black Americans, civil rights, criminal

justice reform, social justice, social movements, racism, macro social work

Subjects: Criminal Justice, Macro Practice, Policy and Advocacy, Race, Ethnicity, and Culture, Social Justice and Human

Rights

Definitions of Social Movements

Hutchison (2019) suggests that a social movement evolves out of a conscious and collective effort by a large group of people who believe that something in society is unjust. It requires work outside of established institutions for a sustained period of time to change some aspect of society. These social movements may be either proactive or reactive. Proactive social movements intend to change existing and undesirable social structures to promote positive changes in society, whereas reactive social movements attempt to maintain traditional social structures and the status quo (Ballantine et al., 2018).

Early scholars (Diani, 1992; Tilly, 1978; Turner & Killian, 1987) did not agree on a definition of a social movement. Diani (1992), a pioneer in the study of social movements, conceptualized a social movement as “networks of informal interactions between a plurality of individuals, groups or organizations, engaged in political or cultural conflicts based on shared collective identities” (p. 1). Diani proposed that social movements may impact the political and cultural processes at systemic and non-systemic levels. However, theorists (Diani, 1992; Tilly, 1978; Turner & Killian, 1987) appear to agree that a social movement must occur in the collective sense. Collectivity acts with “some continuity to promote or resist a change in the society or

Mildred Delozia, Alabama A&M University and Charles M. S. Birore, Norfolk State University

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organization of which it is part” (Turner & Killian, 1987, p. 223). The following highlights provide information regarding the basic tenets from other theorists regarding the meaning of social movements:

A social movement is a set of opinions and beliefs in a population, which represents preferences for changing some elements of the social structure and reward distribution of a society (McCarthy & Zald, 1977, p. 1217).

A social movement is “organized efforts to promote or resist change in society that rely, at least in part, on non-institutionalized forms of political action” (Marx & McAdam, 1994, p. 73).

Turner and Killian (1987, p. 223) defined a social movement as “a collectivity acting with some continuity to promote or resist a change in the society or organization of which it is part. As a collectivity, a movement is a group with indefinite and shifting membership and with a leadership whose position is determined more by the informal response of adherents than by formal procedures for legitimizing authority.”

della Porta and Diani (2006) synthesized the literature on the definition of a social movement and defined it as “a distinct social process, consisting of the mechanisms through which actors engaged in collective action are involved in conflictual relations with clearly identified opponents, are linked by dense informal networks, and share a distinct collective identity” (p. 20).

Impetus for Social Movements

Throughout history, theorists have sought to determine the impetus for social movements.

della Porta and Diani (2006) theorized that a social movement developed when a feeling of dissatisfaction spread and insufficiently flexible institutions were unable to respond. Researchers (Sen & Avci, 2016) posited that new movements originated when the following elements were present. Additionally, when these elements were present, social movements have the potential to expand:

Certain people or groups of people in a society must feel that they are deprived of a specific good, service, or resource (p. 126).

If several individuals in a society have particular grievances, they may be able to mobilize necessary resources and alleviate the grievances (p. 126).

Chances for a movement to grow and flourish are enhanced when governments are weak or more tolerant of dissenting behaviors. This allows movements to grow by taking advantage of the weakened government and a tolerant atmosphere (p. 127).

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Social Movements and Their Perspectives

Social movement scholars have identified multiple perspectives regarding the onset of social movements, their political processes, organizational structures, sociocultural frameworks, and resource mobilization. These perspectives include the political process perspective, mobilizing structures perspective, and cultural framing perspective. In addition, scholars have recently identified three emerging perspectives. These emerging perspectives include the participant emotional reaction perspective, participant variation perspective, and collective identity perspective (Hutchison, 2019). Similarly, other social movement scholars have identified five types of social movements which include reform movements, revolutionary movements, reactionary movements, self-help movements, and religious movements (Snow & Soule, 2009). Table 1 provides information on various types of social movements.

Table 1. Types of Social Movements

Type of social movement

Description of movement

Reform movement

Seeks to work within a political system to change offensive societal structures including its institutions, policies, economic system, and social structures (e.g., Southern civil rights movement, women’s suffrage movement, BLMM)

Revolutionary movement

Seeks to overthrow the existing political system by removing the offensive structures and replacing them with new institutions, policies, economic systems, redistributions of wealth, and social structures (e.g., American revolution, apartheid movement in South Africa)

Reactionary movement

Attempts to block social change and maintain the status quo by maintaining societal structures that other movements may attempt to change or remove (e.g., anti-abortion movement, All Lives Matter, Ku Klux Klan)

Self-help movement

Movements in which individuals attempt to bring about changes in their lives on a personal level (e.g., Alcoholics Anonymous, Weight Watchers, Narcotics Anonymous)

Religious movement

Focuses on religious ideologies within established religious institutions or by creating new religious institutions (e.g., early Christianity, religious cults)

Note. Adapted from Aberle (1966) and Snow and Soule (2009).

Political Process Perspective

The political process of a social movement emphasizes the notion that a social movement involves a series of collective actions characterized by a power imbalance between the elite and oppressed groups. The goal of the political process is to alter conditions perceived and recognized

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as undesirable, unjust, and subject to change (McAdam et al., 1996). McAdam (1999) theorized that collective actions and an attitude toward changing unjust social structures influence political institutions to take action toward a desired social change. In addition to seeking political action, a social movement represents a continuous process rather than disconnected and isolated stages of sustained desired social change. McAdam (1999) succinctly posited that the political process perspective stands on the following:

the fundamental assumption that wealth and power are concentrated . . . in the hands of a few groups, thus depriving most people of any real influence over the major decisions that affect their lives. Accordingly, social movements are seen, in both perspectives, as rational attempts by excluded groups to mobilize sufficient political leverage to advance collective interests through noninstitutionalized means. (pp. 36–37)

McAdam et al. (1996) emphasized the importance of the political process for a social movement to emerge. The political process in this context is closely aligned with the paradigm of political opportunity. Thus the social environment or exogenous factors which are external to the actual social movement either enhance or inhibit the social movement (Meyer & Minkoff, 2004). However, at the onset of social movements in a given society is inevitable for successful social change because of its utility value in terms of providing political opportunities for collective actions to take root in such a society (McAdam et al, 1996). Consistent with McAdam et al. (1996), scholars on social movements (della Porta & Diani, 2006; Tarrow, 2006) have found that there are several political process dimensions that can facilitate or hinder the development of social movements. These dimensions include openness of the political system, stability of political alignments (within political parties), availability of elite allies of social movements to support social change, and international relations with social movements (Hutchison, 2019; Tarrow, 2006).

Mobilizing Structures Perspective

The mobilizing structures perspective on social movements posits that having a viable political process for social change is inadequate if three fundamental components for effective mobilization are missing or weak: informal and formal structures of organization of the social movement, information and communication technology, and the life course of the movement (Hutchison, 2019). Hutchison (2019) stated that “social movements must be able to attract new members and sustain the involvement of current members” (p. 437). Mobilizing structures, according to McAdam et al. (1996), means

those collective vehicles, informal as well as formal, through which people mobilize and engage in collective action. This focus on the meso-level groups, organizations, and informal networks that comprise the collective building blocks of social movements and revolutions constitutes the second conceptual element in our synthesis of recent work in the field. (p. 3)

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Cultural Framing Perspective

The cultural framing perspective on social movements postulates that both political processes and mobilizing structures are necessary but are insufficient for sustained, successful, and effective social movement without cultural framing forces in place (Hutchison, 2019). Hutchison advanced the following:

The cultural framing perspective asserts that a social movement can succeed only when participants develop shared understandings and definitions of the situation. These shared meanings develop through a transactional m of consciousness raising, which social movement scholars call cultural framing. (p. 442)

For McAdam et al. (1996), the cultural framing perspective for social movements involved “conscious strategic efforts by groups of people to fashion shared understandings of the world and of themselves that legitimate and motivate collective action” (p. 6). The social movement leadership must frame its collective efforts in articulating and developing a framework upon which the group members and the public will understand that the undesired conditions exist, will recognize a window of opportunity for demanding social changes, will establish achievable and realistic goals, and will identify pathways for action in a sustained manner (Hutchinson, 2019). The major assumptions of the cultural framing perspective include the following: Social movements must be able to develop shared understandings that legitimate and motivate collective action, and social movements must actively participate in the naming of grievances and injustices. Other assumptions are that social movement leaders must construct a perception that change is possible, and that social movements must be able to create cultural frames that appeal to diverse audiences (Hutchinson, 2019, pp. 442–443).

Emerging Perspectives

Other social movement scholars (e.g., Castells, 2012; Gould, 2009; Hutchison, 2019) have found that the three dominant perspectives on social movements presented earlier cannot explain in a comprehensive fashion the reasons for the emergence of social movements. For example, Castells theorized that people’s emotions, outrage, and anger, in addition to rationality, contributed to the emergence of social movements. Social activists and social movement participants tend to transform emotions into collective actions.

Another perspective is collective identity in social movements. Proponents of this perspective contend that in addition to emotions, collective identity of the participants characterizes a successful social movement. Participants who identify collectively, understand the movement’s collective goals, and understand the circumstances through which they can achieve such goals are more likely to commit themselves to the cause and to mobilize for the social movement (Hutchison, 2019).

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Black Lives Matter Movement and Perspectives on Social Movements

An understanding of social movements and how they progress is essential to gain an understanding of the Black Lives Matter movement (BLMM) and the reasons it has gained global significance. Each of the perspectives previously presented on social movements assists the reader in understanding the BLMM. Moreover, the narrative that follows presents information from the literature on the history of African American social movements in the United States and attempts to facilitate an understanding of the history of the BLMM based on the definitions of social movements, perspectives of social movements, and types of social movements.

History of Social Movements in the African American Community

Historically, social movements have been essential for African Americans. Multiple motivating factors have propelled these movements over time (Dunn, 1998). Initially, slavery and its negative impact on the well-being of African Americans was the impetus for forging social movements among African Americans (Equal Justice Initiative, 2021; Wood, 1998). Native Africans kidnapped from Africa and forcefully brought to the Americas did not accept the institution of chattel slavery. They fought being enslaved and the inhumanity of the institution of slavery. The second impetus for social movements among Blacks has been the continuous systemic racism perpetrated against this racial and ethnic group at individual, interpersonal, and institutional levels (DeGruy, 2017; Mental Health America, 2020; Williams et al., 2019). Domination of White Americans in political, economic, and sociocultural aspects to the disadvantage of Black Americans is the third significant impetus (Pinkney, 2009), and continued police racial biases and brutality against Black Americans is the fourth.

Throughout history, social movements and advocacy organizations focused on African Americans have recognized major indicators of physical, mental, and socioeconomic factors that adversely affected the lives of African Americans. The BLMM stands on the shoulders of other civil rights movements and organizations in the United States. Between 1905 and 2016, 26 national, regional, and local movements, organizations, and coalitions addressed continuous systemic racism and the domination of White Americans. White supremacy, including violent and overt refusal to allow Black Americans to achieve any semblance of equality through voter suppression and other aspects of political, economic, and sociocultural domination, was victorious for a while (Pinkney, 2009). In 1905, the Niagara Falls Movement, organized by a group of males led by W. E. B. Du Bois and others described as African American intellectuals, responded to a call to action. During this time in history, African Americans were initially hopeful due to restructured government policies under the 14th and 15th Amendments. However, this era ushered in repressive laws and customs. As a result, African Americans suffered widespread inhumanities designed to dehumanize them (Blight, 2018).1 This led to the formation of two prominent civil rights organizations (Table 2). These organizations were the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909 and the National Urban League (NUL) in 1910.

1

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The NAACP is the oldest civil rights organization in the United States. Its agenda and mission are based on multiple areas of human rights, including economic justice, social justice, criminal justice reform, police brutality, wellness and health, voting rights, and poverty issues (see note 1). The NUL has a rich history of advocacy and services in the Black American community that are related to wellness and health education, the amelioration of poverty, economic justice, social justice, and voting rights.

Before and after the NAACP and NUL were organized, 24 other organizations and social movements aligned with diverse individuals and groups to combat continued oppression, institutional racism, and ongoing social justice issues. Table 2 identifies 26 human rights and social justice-related social movements and organizations from 1905 through the founding of the BLMM in 2013 and the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) in 2016. The mission statements, purposes, and services of each social movement and organization indicate that all of the organizations focused on general civil rights issues. In addition to civil rights, the BLMM has emphasized a primary focus on social justice, criminal justice reform, and police brutality. An analysis of the other social movements and advocacy groups from 1905 to 2016 indicated that of the 25 other movements and organizations, 18 (73%) focused on social justice, six (24%) shared a similar mission of criminal justice reform, and seven (28%) focused on police brutality.

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Table 2. Historical Presentation of Civil Rights and Social Justice Movements and Organizations

Movement and advocacy organization

Year found

Economic justice

Social justice

Criminal justice reform

Police brutality

General civil rights

Health & wellness

Voting rights

Poverty & powerlessness

Niagara movement 1905 X X X

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

1909 X X X X X X X X

National Urban League 1910 X X X X X

Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters

1925 X X

National Council of Negro Women

1935 X X X

March on Washington movement (MOWM)

1941 X

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

1942 X X X X

Women’s Political Council 1946 X X

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Movement and advocacy organization

Year found

Economic justice

Social justice

Criminal justice reform

Police brutality

General civil rights

Health & wellness

Voting rights

Poverty & powerlessness

Montgomery Improvement Association

1955 X X X

Montgomery Bus Boycott 1955 X X X

American Civil Rights movement Mid-1950s X X X X X X X X

Southern Leadership Conference/Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)

1957 X X X X

1961 Freedom Rides (organized by CORE)

1961 X

Council of Federated Organizations

1961 X X

1963 March on Washington 1963 X X X X

Lowndes County Freedom Organization

1965 X X X X

March from Selma to Montgomery

1965 X X X

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Movement and advocacy organization

Year found

Economic justice

Social justice

Criminal justice reform

Police brutality

General civil rights

Health & wellness

Voting rights

Poverty & powerlessness

March Against Fear 1966 X X

Black Panther Party 1966 X X X X X X X

Say It Loud “Black and Proud” and Black Power movement

1968 X X X

Southern Poverty Law Center 1971 X X X X

Equal Justice Initiative 1989 X X X

National Action Network 1991 X X X

Color of Change 2005 X X

Black Lives Matter movement 2013 X X X X X X X

Movement4BlackLives 2016 X X X X X X X X

Note. Information obtained from web pages for cited social movements and organizations.

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Black Lives Matter

Black Lives Matter and #BlackLivesMatter is a mantra and a hashtag with global recognition and significance to many individuals. The simple phrase originated shortly after February 26, 2012 when George Zimmermann, a neighborhood watch captain, fatally shot 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Although charged with second-degree murder approximately 45 days later, Zimmerman was acquitted (Cable News Network, 2013). Zimmerman’s acquittal garnered national attention and outrage among millions who expressed their dismay through street protests and on social media.

On different social media, Alicia Garza, one of Black Lives Matter’s cofounders, was outraged by Zimmerman’s acquittal and posted her opposition on Facebook in what she called a “Love Letter to Black People.” Her post expressed dismay at how little Black lives mattered. Patrice Cullors, a Los Angeles community organize