Black Lives Matter, colloquially known as BLM, is a Marxist organization that is in fundamental opposition to the values that America was founded upon. How do I know this? Because I went to their website(s) and actually read their platform.
Here are a few examples of BLM’s Marxist demands:
- “Real, meaningful, and equitable universal health care ...”
- “A constitutional right at the state and federal level to a fully-funded education ...”
- “A progressive restructuring of tax codes at the local state, and federal levels, to ensure a radical and sustainable redistribution of wealth.”
- “Reparations … in the form of a guaranteed minimum livable income …”
- “Reparations … in the form of corporate and government reparations … and ensuring our access and control of food sources, housing and land.”
- “Reparations … in the form of mandated public school curriculums that critically examine the political, economic, and social impacts of colonialism and slavery, and … the recognition and honoring of our collective struggles and triumphs.”
- “Federal and state job programs that specifically target the most economically marginalized …”
- “We seek democratic control over how resources are preserved, used and distributed …”
I could add several more items to this list, however, I think the point has been made.
Yet, if you still need more convincing, perhaps we should consider a few statements from the founders of BLM.
For instance, Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors put it rather bluntly in 2015, when she said, “We are trained Marxists.”
Not to be outdone, that same year, co-founder Opal Tometi, wrote the following after she visited Venezuelan dictator Nicholas Maduro, another self-proclaimed Marxist: “In these last 17 years, we have witnessed the Bolivarian Revolution champion participatory democracy and construct a fair, transparent election system recognized as among the best in the world … We have seen the most marginalized sectors of Venezuela transform into active citizens in collaboration with a government that has responded to their needs and aspirations.”
Or how about this BLM statement, “Lessons from Fidel: Black Lives Matter and the Transition of El Comandante.” In it, BLM writes, “We are feeling many things as we awaken to a world without Fidel Castro. There is an overwhelming sense of loss, complicated by fear and anxiety. Although no leader is without their flaws, we must push back against the rhetoric of the right and come to the defense of El Comandante.”
The statement continues, “Revolution is continuous and is won first in the hearts and minds of the people and is continually shaped and reshaped by the collective. No single revolutionary ever wins or even begins the revolution. The revolution begins only when the whole is fully bought in and committed to it. And it is never over.”
And then there is this whopper, “Revolution is rooted in the recognition that there are certain fundamentals to which every being has a right, just by virtue of one’s birth: healthy food, clean water, decent housing, safe communities, quality healthcare, mental health services, free and quality education, community spaces, art, democratic engagement, regular vacations, sports, and places for spiritual expression are not questions of resources, but questions of political will and they are requirements of any humane society.”
BLM’s statement concludes, “With Fidel’s passing there is one more lesson that stands paramount: when we are rooted in collective vision when we bind ourselves together around quests for infinite freedom of the body and the soul, we will be victorious. As Fidel ascends to the realm of the ancestors, we summon his guidance, strength, and power as we recommit ourselves to the struggle for universal freedom. Fidel Vive!”
What is arguably most scary about BLM is how quickly it has become mainstream in the wake of the death of George Floyd. BLM is flush with cash from corporations and the like. Moreover, BLM’s Marxist message, violent rioting, wanton looting, and racial division is being bought—hook, line, and sinker—by a majority of Americans.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, far-Left groups such as the Weather Underground engaged in similar activities. However, back then, these groups were seen as fringe radicals, not mainstream.
Perhaps, the current leaders of BLM learned form the mistakes of past Marxist movements. After all, many of them are disciples of Weather Underground’s notorious leaders, such as Eric Mann, Bill Ayers, and Susan Rosenberg, who happens to sit on the Board of Directors of Thousand Currents, which “handles Black Lives Matter’s administrative and back-end work so the racial group can focus on its activism, protests, and riots.”
If you thought the 1960s and 1970s violence and social upheaval was a thing of the past, think again. BLM is the 21st century reincarnation of the failed groups that sought to sow socialism in America a generation ago.
Let’s hope the current iteration of the Marxist movement, under the BLM banner, disappears just as the Weather Underground did by the end of the 1970s. In 1982, President Ronald Reagan said, “the march of freedom and democracy … will leave Marxism-Leninism on the ash-heap of history.” Almost 40 years later, the fight for freedom continues.
Chris Talgo (ctalgo@heartland.org) is an editor at The Heartland Institute.