1 In 2013, three radical Black organizers — Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal

2 Tometi — created a Black-centered political will and movement building project

3 called #BlackLivesMatter. It was in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martin’s
4 murderer, George Zimmerman.

5 The project is now a member-led global network of more than 40 chapters. Our
6 members organize and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black
7 communities by the state and vigilantes.

8 Black Lives Matter is an ideological and political intervention in a world where Black
9 lives are systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. It is an affirmation of
10 Black folks’ humanity, our contributions to this society, and our resilience in the face
11 of deadly oppression.

12 As organizers who work with everyday people, BLM members see and understand
13 significant gaps in movement spaces and leadership. Black liberation movements in
14 this country have created room, space, and leadership mostly for Black heterosexual,
15 cisgender men — leaving women, queer and transgender people, and others either
16 out of the movement or in the background to move the work forward with little or no
17 recognition. As a network, we have always recognized the need to center the
18 leadership of women and queer and trans people. To maximize our movement
19 muscle, and to be intentional about not replicating harmful practices that excluded so
20 many in past movements for liberation, we made a commitment to placing
21 those at the margins closer to the center.

22 As #BlackLivesMatter developed throughout 2013 and 2014, we utilized it as a

23 platform and organizing tool. Other groups, organizations, and individuals used it to
24 amplify anti-Black racism across the country, in all the ways it showed up. Tamir
25 Rice, Tanisha Anderson, Mya Hall, Walter Scott, Sandra Bland — these names are
26 inherently important. The space that #BlackLivesMatter held and continues to hold
27 helped propel the conversation around the state-sanctioned violence they
28 experienced. We particularly highlighted the egregious ways in which Black women,
29 specifically Black trans women, are violated. #BlackLivesMatter was developed in
30 support of all Black lives.

31 In 2014, Mike Brown was murdered by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson. It was
32 a guttural response to be with our people, our family — in support of the brave and
33 courageous community of Ferguson and St. Louis as they were being brutalized by
34 law enforcement, criticized by media, tear gassed, and pepper sprayed night after
35 night. Darnell Moore and Patrisse Cullors organized a national ride during Labor Day1
36 weekend that year. We called it the Black Life Matters Ride. In 15 days, we
37 developed a plan of action to head to the occupied territory to support our brothers
38 and sisters. Over 600 people gathered. We made two commitments: to support the
39 team on the ground in St. Louis, and to go back home and do the work there. [...]

40 When it was time for us to leave, inspired by our friends in Ferguson, organizers
41 from 18 different cities went back home and developed Black Lives Matter chapters
42 in their communities and towns — broadening the political will and movement
43 building reach catalyzed by the #BlackLivesMatter project and the work on the
44 ground in Ferguson.

45 It became clear that we needed to continue organizing and building Black power
46 across the country. People were hungry to galvanize2 their communities to end state-
47 sanctioned violence against Black people, the way Ferguson organizers and allies
48 were doing. Soon we created theBlack Lives Matter Global
49 Networkinfrastructure. It is adaptive and decentralized, with a set of guiding
50 principles. Our goal is to support the development of new Black leaders, as well as
51 create a network where Black people feel empowered3 to determine our destinies in
52 our communities. [...]

Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, blacklivesmatter.com,

2022

1: Fête du travail 2: To encourage 3: be authorized/having power to do something/independent

Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi, founders of the BLM movement
 QUESTIONS BLACK LIVES MATTER

Group 1: From line 1 to 11

1. What type of document is it?

This document is an online article about the Black Lives Matter movement

2. Who is it about?

It is about the creators of the BLM movement, 3 radical black women

3. With your own words, summarize your part.

This part is about the reasons behind the creation of this movement, its aim
(=goal). The authors share their demands. They seem to be tired of the situation,
angry. They use strong words to describe their feelings, "resilience" ; "deadly
oppression".

4. Explain what could “chapter” means (l.5).

A chapter is any organization that has local branches in multiple areas with a
same mission.

Group 2: From line 12 to 30

1. What change is underlined in your part? Why is this movement different from others?

It is an inclusive movement which accepts and fight for the rights of the
LGBTQIA+ community. It is not only for straight (=heterosexual) men. It
includes black and white women, trans people (queer people = not straight)...

2. Do you know a word to define this social issue (when someone has multiple factors
that increase his risk to be discriminated)?

Intersectionality (noun)

/ˌɪntərsekʃəˈnæləti/

the connection between social categories such as race, class, religion, gender and
sexual orientation made when this connection may result in additional
disadvantage or discrimination. (Ex: a poor black woman, may be more discriminated
than a rich black woman, but a rich black man may be less discriminated than a rich black
woman).

3. Explain with your own words the passage in bold letters: “we made a commitment to
placing those at the margins closer to the center” (l.20).

They want to protect the rights of the people that are discriminated the most, the
minorities (=minorités), and make them feel equal to the rest of the population,
so that nobody is put aside.