Black Lives Matter movement raises awareness of institutionalized racism

At last week’s Democratic Presidential Candidate Debate, the candidates were asked, “Do black lives matter, or do all lives matter?”

The question is referencing the juxtaposed political movements of Black Lives Matter and All Lives Matter.

Black Lives Matter is a movement birthed out of the recent injustices committed against the black community. They attempt to raise awareness of institutionalized racism through, despite what Fox News may lead one to believe, non-violent protests.

All Lives Matter exists to oppose Black Lives Matter. They operate on the idea that Black Lives Matter is exclusionary, and that not just black lives matter, all lives matter.

They often cite examples of whites who are abused, and sometimes killed, by police. They use these examples to state that conflicts between police and black individuals garner too much media attention in comparison to conflicts between white individuals and police. Although it may seem innocent, All Lives Matter is not truly beneficial.

All Lives Matter creates a silencing effect on the black community. Their purpose is not to protest police brutality, but to stop blacks from protesting police brutality. If their belief was truly that all lives matter, there would be All Lives Matter protests following police violence against a white individual, which does not happen.

In fact, the only time All Lives Matter is heard from is when they are claiming we should not focus on issues of police brutality against black individuals because “not just black lives matter.”

All Lives Matter does not act in their namesake. They act with intent to disenfranchise the black community. So even though “all lives matter,” it is unfair to pay attention to any injustice against the black community.

Black Lives Matter exists for a reason. They raise awareness of issues that need to be addressed for our society to truly be free and equal. Institutional racism is truly a cancer to our society. Black individuals run a much more difficult race through life than white individuals do because of it.

This is not a debatable idea,  but a concrete truth. Black Lives Matter exists because we live in a society that seems to believe that they do not.

So yes, all lives do matter. However, we need to acknowledge that not all lives are respected.

All Lives Matter may claim to be the true supporter of equality, but its existence is symbolic of the racial inequality that still plagues our country. They only exist to ensure that the disenfranchised stay disenfranchised.

There are real problems with our country, and those impacted have the right to express their disdain for those problems without being silenced.