Black Lives Matter (too)

From a marketing standpoint Black Lives Matter Too probably would have made more sense. Of course, when you are busy struggling for equal justice and fighting for your civil rights, you don't think about the marketing aspect of your rallying cry too much .

Many of the folks in the majority population view the phrase black lives matter as declaring that ONLY black lives matter. They believe that somehow when you say that black lives matter you are saying that other lives don't matter as well. Of course nothing could be further from the truth. 

All lives matter has become a counter to the phrase, black lives matter, and it's a huge straw man. Of course all lives do matter, it's just that given what has been happening to black lives of late, we have to remind America that black lives matter as well. It seems like such a low bar. All we are saying is that black lives matter, that's it. Not that black lives are somehow superior to white (or any other) lives. 

The vice president of the United States refused to even say the phrase. When pressed it took him almost five tortured minutes to explain why he couldn't say it. Something about all lives being precious in the eyes of God, and to single out black lives would be wrong. There is that straw man again. What's sad is that you just know that Mr. Pence knows better, but given the politics of the day, and his need to pander to Mr. trump's white base, saying that black lives matter would be political suicide. 

Finally, though, it seems that the rest of America is catching on, and more and more mainstream outlets are starting to use the phrase. We can thank the moment we are living in for that. Of course who knows how long it will last.

Let's hope that the straw man can be put away with for good, and that the real meaning of the phrase will be understood by all. 

Yes, even Mike Pence.