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via DNAInfo

I thought this was a really interesting read. Some of it is Chicago-specific, but I think there are some really choice quotes that speak to the national conversation, as well. Some highlights:

Last month, thousands of teachers and their supporters gathered after a one-day strike at the Thompson Center, where activist Page May shocked the crowd by taking the stage after Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis and shouting, "F--- the police." The union faced major backlash after the remarks, and leaders ultimately distanced themselves from May's comments.

"They don't get to co-opt our momentum and not be confronted with our ideological differences," May said. "I can't speak for the teachers union as an institution. I am very explicitly interested in liberation for black people [and all people], what has yet to be seen is is [where they stand]."

The tactics of Chicago's young black protesters have been criticized by some, but civil rights icon Timuel Black says that passion and rejection of the status quo is precisely what the movement needs.

"I love what they are doing. They are imitating those before them like Paul Robeson, W.E B. DuBois, and Martin Luther King," Black told DNAinfo. "They are carrying on the spirit of their ancestors. If you're for sale, someone will buy you."

At 98 years old, Black has been fighting racism his entire life. He's friends with President Obama, advised Martin Luther King Jr. and now lectures at the University of Chicago. He's lived through many eras in Chicago, but things haven't actually changed very much.

Charles Preston, a 25-year-old member of the Black Youth Project, said electing people who claim they'll make things better simply doesn't work. After watching his school, Chicago State University, lose funding after lawmakers in Springfield locked horns over the state budget, that became even more clear.

"From my experience, the history of electoral politics has no interest in black liberation," Preston said. "We're seeing the failure of our government to pass a budget to fund [schools]. It's ridiculous when they talk about the values of education. I have no faith in the two-party system. What politicians have spoken out on issues that represent our community?"

Veronica Morris Moore, a youth organizer with Fearless Leading by the Youth and the Trauma Center Coalition, says there’s no competition between the current groups of protesters.

“I don’t think there’s a need for us to keep up with each other. We work together in a coalition. This isn’t capitalism,” Moore said. “We challenge each other and help each other develop. What we do as young, black organizations is to challenge the larger society about social justice and politics. Ultimately, our goal is to encourage liberation.”

Minister/activist Pierre Keys agreed, and said that while Black Lives Matter might get a lot of headlines, they aren't the only people working.

“Although [Black Lives Matter] and other organizations participated in helping stir the pot, they are not the organization responsible for Foxx's win or the release of the Laquan McDonald tape,” Keys said. “I think we need to lift up those individuals and organizations that may not be affiliated with BLM."

"Their challenge is to figure out how to support the young people by helping us out by strategizing instead of using the opportunity as a photo op," May said. "We're not looking for them to offer their celebrity. We're looking for them to offer their wisdom."

There's a lot more worth reading in the article. I've seen a lot of folks criticize the methods of black liberation protests (whether by individual chapters of BLM or other groups), but when you're literally fighting for your right to live and prosper, how can you blame them?

As a white guy, I found this article really informative, and it gave me a lot of context for the recent protests in Chicago, and America as a whole. What do you guys think?

 

[NoblesseOblige]

I don't think they should be concerned with whether they're offending me either. They are fighting for something greater than my complacency.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

I'm not offended.