Mediaboss Marketing

Regarding As 1-year anniversary of death nears, Third Ward park named after George Floyd, (May 23): I agree 100 percent with this article and the honoring of George Floyd. Hopefully his death will help our country trend in a better direction. We should not fear the police. They are here to protect us. The park should remain as a symbol of how we are willing to fight for justice for Black lives now and forever.

Steven Shields, Houston

Party of distraction

Regarding Majority in GOP ready to move on from riot, (A3, May 28): As I read the morning paper it seems to me that Republicans in Texas and nationally are sharpening their skills as the party of distraction. In Texas the party is embroiled in fights over legalizing unlicensed gun carry and keeping transgender women students from participating in sports. Meanwhile the real business of the state goes by the wayside. The Republican leadership in Congress plays down the importance of establishing a commission to discover the leaders of the lawless mob that invaded the United States Capitol killing a Capitol policeman and maiming others. But neither Sens. Ted Cruz nor John Cornyn seem capable of admitting the seriousness of the events of Jan. 6 nor the truth of what my eyes saw captured on camera. My only recourse was my vote but now they are attempting to even take away or limit that right.

Jere Pfister, Houston

Protecting liberty

Regarding Abbott bans mask rules, (A1, May 19): Even though fully vaccinated, I will continue to wear a mask in public buildings because I believe in science and have a genuine desire to help my family and my community. Even though I could go without a mask, I see the value in protecting those around me (who either cannot be vaccinated yet or are immunocompromised) from any airborne contagion. Many of us have grandchildren who are too young to be vaccinated. Many of us have elderly parents who even though vaccinated have benefited from a flu-free year. Many of us have family members who have serious diseases and would be endangered even catching a cold. Many of us go to stores and confront workers who must interact with hundreds of people a day. By making this very small sacrifice we are protecting the liberties of others, in other words, the liberty of those other people to engage in the world around them and stay healthy.

Kitty Kenyon, Katy

Read more:
Opinion: Black lives matter now and forever - Houston Chronicle

Angela Moschetta in May was one of the Parkites in attendance online as Mayor Andy Beerman and the Park City Council met in a two-day retreat, an opportunity for the elected officials to talk broadly about key issues without the pressure of a typical meeting when votes must be cast.

The mayor and City Council addressed the overarching issues confronting the community, including the ideal of social equity. It is a priority for City Hall and designed to ensure the diverse tapestry of the communitys population has an opportunity to thrive.

The discussion eventually moved to comments about a series of giant murals with social justice themes that were put on the Main Street asphalt last summer, including one with a Black Lives Matter message. The murals quickly became polarizing and were vandalized shortly after they were made. The works and the vandalism spurred widespread discussion about race in the community that has stretched for nearly a year. There were also questions at the time about the City Hall process that led to the creation of the murals and whether the project was properly publicized prior to the works appearing.

The elected officials at the retreat spoke about the topic, but Moschetta provided notable input as well. She was especially direct as she addressed the mayor and City Council, indicating that Black people were not involved in the planning of the murals. She said the artist who created the Black Lives Matter mural is not Black.

You have chosen to not involve these people. You have chosen to make decisions as white people, to turn to other white people. Anybody with any kind of curatorial experience would have known what was going on that street, would have known about the potential political implications, Moschetta said during the retreat.

She added that City Hall did not involve any of these people in the discussion before that you could have and that the Park City Police Department could have been alerted to the murals prior to their creation.

Moschetta also mentioned two members of the City Council by name Tim Henney and Max Doilney as she spoke about the controversy. The mayor intervened after Moschetta mentioned Doilney by name, abruptly stopping her comments.

Hey, Angela, Angela, Angela, were not going to tolerate personal attacks here, so if you want to keep it broad level, youre welcome to, Beerman told her.

Moschetta responded by saying she was addressing what she saw as a lack of process regarding the murals. Beerman then ended her comments.

Angela, Im sorry, I asked you not to be personal, you continue it. Were cutting you off, he said.

Moschetta in recent years has become an activist who has addressed topics like the trademark controversy centered on the name Park City, the Treasure dispute and City Halls plans to develop an arts and culture district. She has both praised and criticized the municipal government. She is seen as the leader of a group known as Future Park City. Moschetta is a supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The tense moment between Moschetta and the mayor that ended with Beerman stopping her comments highlighted the contentiousness of the topic of social equity in a community that is largely white with Latinos being the only racial minority inside Park City in any significant number. It also showed there is lingering controversy regarding the murals months after time, traffic and the elements left the works unintelligible.

Beerman provided a prepared statement regarding the matter in response to a Park Record inquiry.

Public input is always welcome and encouraged, but it is expected to be civil and topical, he said. Recently one of our residents was muted after making personal attacks and disrupting an otherwise constructive discussion. She was given a chance to re-frame her statements but chose not to, so we moved forward with the meeting. Following the discussion, all of Council showed their support for my decision.

In a later interview, Moschetta said it is concerning that, according to her, Park City leaders have recently attempted to discredit, dismiss and undermine public comment and dissenting opinions.

Its the opposite of democracy, Moschetta said.

Read the original:
Park City mayor, in tense moment, cuts off activist as Black Lives Matter mural returns to forefront - The Park Record

Black Lives Matter Movement

In 2013, three female Black organizers Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi created a Black-centered political will and movement building project calledBlack Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter beganwith a social media hashtag, #BlackLivesMatter, after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martinback in 2012. The movement grew nationallyin 2014 after the deaths of Michael Brown in Missouri and Eric Garner in New York. Since then it has established itself as a worldwidemovement, particularly after the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis, MN. Most recently, #Black Lives Matter has spearheaded demonstrations worldwide protesting police brutality and systematic racism that overwhelmingly effects the Black community.

According to the Black Lives Matterwebsite theywere "founded in 2013 in response to the acquittal of Trayvon Martins murderer. Black Lives Matter Foundation, Inc is a global organization in the US, UK, and Canada, whose mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes. By combating and countering acts of violence, creating space for Black imagination and innovation, and centering Black joy, we are winning immediate improvements in our lives."

BLM's #WhatMatters2020 Campaign: This 2020 Election-focused campaign focuses on promoting voter registration "among Millennials, Generation Z, the Black community, and allies" and education voters about a wide range of issues including "racial injustice, police brutality, criminal justice reform, Black immigration, economic injustice, LGBTQIA+ and human rights, environmental injustice, access to healthcare, access to quality education, and voting rights and suppression."

Local BLM Chapters: Local chapters of BLM in many areas of the country, including theDMV,have their own social media accounts to facilitate engagement in civil action close to home.

Follow Black Lives Matter onTwitter,FacebookandInstagram

Read this article:
The Black Lives Matter Movement - A Brief History of Civil ...

A man holds a Black Lives Matter flag during a March protest in St. Paul, Minn. Support for Black Lives Matter surged after protests following George Floyd's death. Activists charge that disparaging posts targeting BLM are part of an overall effort to undermine the movement and its message. Kerem Yucel/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

A man holds a Black Lives Matter flag during a March protest in St. Paul, Minn. Support for Black Lives Matter surged after protests following George Floyd's death. Activists charge that disparaging posts targeting BLM are part of an overall effort to undermine the movement and its message.

On May 25, 2020, George Floyd died under the knee of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin and protests erupted worldwide. Support for Black Lives Matter the movement that actually began as a hashtag in 2013 surged. To this day, posts on social media continue to call for racial justice and an end to police brutality.

But also online are posts riddled with disinformation, including those specifically targeting BLM. Activists charge that those disparaging posts are part of an overall effort to undermine the movement and its message.

One post, for example, falsely claims the government has identified it as a terrorist group. Another that circulated widely claimed that BLM activists had badly beaten a group of elderly white people. That post was debunked by fact checkers who found the photos were of South Africans and had been online for years. It was removed, however Jorden Giger, an organizer with Black Lives Matter in South Bend, Ind., says there's still plenty of disinformation online designed to create confusion and distrust.

"Like reports circulating that BLM is going to vandalize businesses in downtown areas, that we are targeting specific, you know, white communities, those kinds of things," he says. " It makes our supporters say, 'OK, I don't want to get involved in that.' Right? So when those kinds of lies and when the disinformation just goes unchecked, you know, folks will believe it, if you don't get ahead of it or respond to it appropriately."

Giger says that's why BLM launched an effort to stop disinformation and urges people to submit details about suspicious posts or stories to the Black Lives Matter website.

WinBlack/Pa'lante, a nonpartisan group created after the 2016 presidential election, also monitors disinformation aimed at people of color. Hundreds of organizers across the country formed a digital war room during last year's election. They tracked bots that automatically send out scripted disinformation, often from Russia or other foreign governments trying to sow discord in the U.S. They tracked what are known as digital blackface accounts that steal images to masquerade as Black people and spread disinformation. Ashley Bryant, one of the co-leaders of WinBlack/Pa'lante, says they also found conspiracy theories about Black Lives Matter.

"That went from George Floyd not being dead to, you know, George Soros funding protests and the full out attacks on BLM where there's foreign actors, there's fake accounts pretending to be Antifa all to actually just build this violent narrative around BLM," she says.

Deen Freelon, a journalism professor at the University of North Carolina who studies digital politics, points to specific instances of disinformation about Black Lives Matter protesters engaging in violence.

"There was a false story about Black Lives Matter allied protesters setting fires in Oregon. So connecting to the wildfires there," he says. "Also claims that Black Lives Matter is white-led and there has been some Spanish language disinformation."

Freelon says Twitter has been vigilant about rooting out state-sponsored disinformation from foreign actors. Facebook says it's taken several steps, too, including working with nonpartisan and independent fact checkers to root out the spread of fake stories.

Information proven to be false can be removed for violating social media standards. That's not the case when it comes to posts online that are technically considered an opinion-- that's harder to combat.

"Examples there include things like the notion that BLM is anti white, which, of course, is an opinion, that it is a hate group," Freelon says. "That it's somehow anti-family, that it is morally equivalent to far-right groups, and then there are some things that kind of blur the line between fact and opinion."

Critics of Black Lives Matters, like Mike Gonzalez, a senior fellow at the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, says its the movement's supporters that are getting duped.

"I feel that Black Lives Matter is one of the greatest sources of disinformation," says Gonzalez, who is the author of an upcoming book on the organization and Marxism.

"They have good Americans, good Americans, well intentioned Americans who do not want to see racial injustice, and rightly so, putting up signs on their lawn about Black Lives Matter," he says. "They (BLM) have manipulated the good nature of many people who think what they're doing, in my view, is trying to promote a philosophy that is not going to be good for this country, will destroy this country and will destroy our way of life."

And then right-wing pundits such as Rudy Giuliani, Candace Owens and Carol Swain amplify often baseless anti-BLM messages to wider audiences. On a Fox News talk show last July, Giuliani said, "Black Lives Matter wants to come and take your house away from you. They want to take your property away from you."

Patrisse Khan Cullors is one of the three co-founders of Black Lives Matter Movement. Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Patrisse Khan Cullors is one of the three co-founders of Black Lives Matter Movement.

On a YouTube show the following day, Swain said, "They (BLM) are using Black people to advance a Marxist agenda."

During her Twitter video post, Candace Owens described BLM protesters as "far left crazy Antifa thugs who know exactly what they're doing."

Patrisse Khan-Cullors, one of the three co-founders of Black Lives Matter, responds to some of that on her YouTube channel.

"I need to set the record straight. Am I a Marxist?" she asks. Khan-Cullors explains that she does believe in Marxism but laughs at online comments that say she's pushing a communist agenda.

"I am working on making sure that people don't suffer," she says. "I am working to make sure that people don't go hungry and these comments I've received have been incredibly hurtful. It means that some people aren't taking the work of BLM seriously."

Tomiko Brown-Nagin, dean of the Radcliffe Institute at Harvard, says some of the disinformation surrounding Black Lives Matter could be from the old-style, anti-civil rights playbook of the 1960s. The FBI under J. Edgar Hoover and segregationists repeatedly used disinformation in an attempt to besmirch that movement.

"So opponents characterized activists as lawbreakers or as violent when overwhelmingly they were nonviolent," Brown-Nagin says. "Also Martin Luther King Jr. and members of his inner circle were said to be communists or communist sympathizers."

Just as the civil rights movement of past years, Black Lives Matter has seen its support both rise and decline after months of protest and the conviction of former police officer Derek Chauvin. While polls show a large majority of African Americans continue to back the movement overall support has dropped from record levels seen after Floyd's death. How much of that loss is due to disinformation is difficult to measure but what's certain is the battle over controlling what people believe about Black Lives Matter and its influence is ongoing.

Originally posted here:
Black Lives Matter Fights Disinformation To Keep The Movement Strong - NPR

A teenager from south London appeared in court Saturday on charges that he was involved in the shooting of a prominent member of the Black Lives Matter movement

ByThe Associated Press

May 29, 2021, 1:05 PM

2 min read

LONDON -- A teenager from south London appeared in court Saturday on charges that he was involved in the shooting of a prominent member of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Cameron Deriggs, 18, is charged with conspiracy to murder Sasha Johnson, who was shot in the head Sunday at a house party in southeast London. Johnson, a 27-year-old mother of two, remains hospitalized in critical condition.

Deriggs, who didnt enter a plea, was ordered to remain in custody until his next court appearance on June 25. Deriggs is one of five people arrested in connection with the shooting earlier this week. The others have been released on bail as the investigation continues.

Johnson is a leader of the Taking the Initiative Party, which says she had received numerous death threats related to her activism. The party aims to combat discrimination, rising inequality and child poverty.

But police say Johnson appears to have been an unintended victim of the attack, which occurred during the early morning hours of May 23 when four men burst into the party and began firing.

Britain, like many countries, has faced an uncomfortable reckoning with race since the death of George Floyd, the Black man who was killed last May by a U.S. police officer who knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes. Black Lives Matter protests swept the U.K., with activists urging the government to face up to the legacy of the British Empire and the countrys extensive profits from the slave trade.

See the article here:
London teenager charged in shooting of BLM activist - ABC News