Archives: In The Press

December 5, 2023

CONTACT: press@M4BL.org

New Report Shows 67% of Black Americans Support Divestment from Police Departments, Investing in Policing Alternatives

New data from The Movement for Black Lives and GenForward Research “Perspectives on Community Safety from Black America” report also suggests that language plays a significant role in support for alternative public safety solutions 

NATIONAL – Following nearly a decade of dedicated and impactful movement work, a new survey released today by The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) and GenForward at the University of Chicago finds consistent and robust support for alternatives to policing and incarceration among Black communities in the United States. 

Sixty-seven percent of Black Americans support reallocating part of police budgets toward investments in health care, education, and housing, and other areas, while 55% support divestment from police departments and allocating entire police budgets toward such investments, according to the data from the survey. The data also suggests that Black Americans have a strong desire to reimagine public safety, especially through new initiatives that would increase funding for community resources and solutions that emphasize prevention, addressing root causes of violence, and support for those formerly incarcerated.

The “Perspectives on Community Safety from Black America” report analyzes data from a comprehensive survey of Black Americans on experiences with policing and perspectives on alternatives to policing and incarceration. M4BL and GenForward surveyed a nationally representative sample of Black people in the United States, with oversamples that enable analysis of perspectives across geographic regions, age, gender, and partisanship. 

“With systemic racism and police violence deeply embedded in our existing systems, we sought to understand how Black people of different backgrounds are thinking about community safety, and how their experiences with policing and incarceration inform their perspectives,” said M. Adams and Celeste Faison, co-National Directors for the Movement for Black Lives. “The ‘Perspectives on Community Safety from Black America’ report illustrates what we have long known – Black people in America are calling for divestment from carceral systems and investment in policing alternatives. We are encouraged by the strong support for alternatives as we continue pushing for effective public safety solutions that truly reflect the needs and experiences of our communities. Now is the time to advance alternatives our people want and implement them into policies that will create safer environments for us all.”

The report provides important insights into the diverse perspectives of Black people when it comes to policing. Nearly three-quarters of Black people view police killings as a “serious” or “very serious” problem, and recognize it as a systemic problem. Half of respondents expressed that they always or sometimes fear contacting police in crisis and emergency situations, and yet, 55% said they would “always” or “almost always” call the police if they needed help. The contrasting findings highlight a painful reality for Black communities: a fear of contacting police, who are meant to serve and protect without bias, alongside an understanding that there are few alternatives to turn to when in need.

“The findings allow us to begin to understand the nuanced and complex perspectives Black people hold about the subjects of public safety and policing,” said Dr. Cathy Cohen, Principal Investigator and Founder of GenForward Research, and the David and Mary Winton Green Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago. “This data also provides a rare opportunity for Black people to speak for themselves, collectively, telling their truth about policing in their communities and their desires for new, often community-based, methods of producing public safety.”

According to the data in the report, the language used to describe policing alternatives also matters when measuring Black Americans’ support for these measures. For example, 33% of respondents expressed support for defunding the police, and 15% expressed support for abolishing the police, but when asked about supporting or opposing divesting from police departments and putting part of police budgets toward healthcare, education, and housing, support among respondents increased to 67%.

When asked about specific policing alternatives that emphasize community safety rather than general calls for divestment and investment, support among Black Americans for such possibilities was overwhelming. Eighty-six percent of Black Americans expressed support for creating a new agency of first responders specializing in de-escalating violence and providing mental health support, while 78% expressed support for city officials investing in public safety measures that do not rely on incarceration.

“The data is clear – we need public safety solutions that are rooted in prevention and mental health, rather than increased incarceration and policing. Traditional policing methods can never deliver the kind of safety our people deeply desire; only a shift in public resources toward community-based initiatives can begin to address underlying issues of poverty, racism, mental health, and education, ” said Dr. Amara Enyia, Policy and Research Director for the Movement for Black Lives. “The data presents an opportunity for lawmakers to also advance effective policies that center the needs and perspectives of Black communities, starting with the People’s Response Act and the Vision for Black Lives.”

For more information on the “Perspectives on Community Safety from Black America” report, or to schedule interviews with The Movement for Black Lives and GenForward Research, please contact press@m4bl.org.

###

The Movement for Black Lives is a national network of more than 150 leaders and organizations creating a broad political home for Black people to learn, organize and take action. M4BL includes activists, organizers, academics, lawyers, educators, health workers, artists and more, all unified in a radical vision for Black liberation and working for equity, justice and healing.

The GenForward Survey at the University of Chicago is the first of its kind—a nationally representative survey of over 3,000 people that amplifies the voices of young adults by oversampling African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinx Americans 40 and under. GenForward pays special attention to how race, ethnicity, and systems of marginalization shape how young adults experience and think about the world.

June 29, 2023

CONTACT: press@M4BL.org

Movement for Black Lives Statement on the Supreme Court’s Decision to End Affirmative Action in College Admissions

After the Supreme Court scrapped decades of precedent, and ruled to overturn affirmative action in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, and Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina, the Movement for Black Lives issued the following statement: 

WASHINGTON D.C. – Today, we witnessed yet another devastating blow in a coordinated attack against this nations’ most impacted communities. Affirmative action policies were designed as a critical intervention to address structural and systemic racism and discrimination by developing more civil rights protections in our society. Institutions of higher education were blatantly discriminating against Black people, and these policies were put in place to respond to generations of discrimination and harm. They were never intended to be a panacea. Over time, and after facing numerous legal and political challenges, affirmative action became a tool for fostering diversity, rather than addressing systemic harms, weakening their impact. 

Despite this, we believe every tool in the toolbox is necessary to dismantle anti-Black racism that persists within and across institutions throughout the country. Today’s Supreme Court decision takes the country backward. There is no such thing as a ‘colorblind’ policy. We need policies that address past and ongoing wrongs against Black people – wrongs perpetrated by institutions across the board. “Colorblind” policies only lock in the status quo – a status quo that automatically benefits whiteness and disadvantages everything and everyone else. 

Because of the Court’s decision, Black students will lose access to the educational and economic opportunities they deserve, while their white peers are nearly assured admissions as legacy applicants. When the University of California ended affirmative action admissions at its schools in 1996, not only did enrollment for Black and Latino students drop by 40 percent the following year, but they were less likely to get their degree, attend graduate school, and even earned less money throughout their careers. Similarly, when Michigan banned affirmative action at its state public universities in 2006, Black enrollment at the University of Michigan dropped from 7 percent then, to just 4 percent now. 

It is also egregious that race-conscious admissions are now viewed as categorically and legally unnecessary for academic institutions, but will remain in place for military academies. With this arbitrary exemption the Court has made it abundantly clear that they view Black people as fit for military service and upholding the United States’ military interests, but not worthy of civil rights protections in higher education or other institutions.

History continues to remind us that ignoring race and in this case, preventing the consideration of race, will not end racism. Despite the fact that Asian Americans were the face of this legal challenge, we know that dismantling race-conscious policies in admission will not ultimately serve AAPI students. Any strategies that pit people of color against each other, without addressing historical harms, only affirm white supremacy. The impact of this decision will extend beyond the realm of education to the private sector, government contracting, and other places where the weight of the Court mitigated the impact of discriminatory policies. The Court’s majority opinion uses the 14th amendment to further entrench racial discrimination. This should worry all of us who care about racial justice and Black liberation.  

The Court’s ruling underscores the importance of implementing our Vision for Black Lives in order to mitigate the harms caused by white supremacy in this country. We demand reparations for the systemic denial of access to high quality educational opportunities through the offering of complete open access for all to free public university, college and technical education programs (including technology, trade and agricultural), as well as full-fledged funding for lifelong learning programs that support communities and families. We also seek the forgiveness of all federal student loans, and the total coverage of all housing and living costs associated with higher education. These policies should apply to everyone, and focus on outreach to communities historically denied access to education, including undocumented, incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people.

###

The Movement for Black Lives is a national network of more than 150 leaders and organizations creating a broad political home for Black people to learn, organize and take action. M4BL includes activists, organizers, academics, lawyers, educators, health workers, artists and more, all unified in a radical vision for Black liberation and working for equity, justice and healing.

August 18, 2021

Movement for Black Lives Releases Report Detailing U.S. Government Persecution of Protestors Supporting Racial Justice

The report details how the federal government deliberately targeted supporters of the movement to defend Black lives during the summer of 2020 uprisings in order to disrupt and discourage Black organizing

Washington, D.C. — Today, the Movement for Black Lives, alongside the Creating Law Enforcement Accountability & Responsibility (CLEAR) clinic at City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law, released a detailed report outlining the federal government’s attempt to disrupt and suppress those who took to the streets in defense of Black lives throughout the summer of 2020. The report —  Struggle for Power: The Ongoing Persecution of Black Movement by the U.S. Government — finds that as the uprisings increased, so did the unilateral deployment of federal agents, largely uninvited by local or state officials. By charging racial justice protesters with federal crimes that carry harsher penalties for conduct that normally would have been prosecuted in state courts, if at all, the government not only acted on hostile rhetoric from the most senior federal officials, but it also perpetuated a long history of attacking Black-led organizing and movement-building. 

“In the spirit of Black August, we must acknowledge that this is not the first or the last time the federal government has utilized coordinated attacks on Black activists as a means to suppress our right to protest,” said Dr. Amara Enyia, Policy and Research Coordinator for the Movement for Black Lives. “Historically, Black protestors have more often than not been met with governmental oppression and accompanying police violence as a result of our unwillingness to accept the systemic disregard for and mistreatment of Black lives. Quite frankly, nothing in this report is surprising, but provides further evidence that, despite persistent attempts to silence Black voices, our collective activism continues to strengthen and grow, and our progression towards Black liberation terrifies the federal government.”

As noted in the report, to disrupt the 2020 uprisings in defense of Black lives, the federal government spread anti-BLM propaganda and cast protestors as “violent radicals” in order to seize power in local communities and charge protestors with inflated federal indictments that carry significantly harsher penalties than local charges. 

Struggle for Power: The Ongoing Persecution of Black Movement by the U.S. Government analyzes 326 criminal cases from August 31, 2020, to October 25, 2020, when federal charges were filed against protestors. Topline findings of the report include:

• 92.6% of the cases could have been charged under equivalent state or local law.
• The federal penalties for 88% of cases were clearly harsher. 
  • Federal charges very often carry greater sentences than state criminal charges for the same conduct and result in convictions at an astoundingly high rate, increasing the number of political prisoners at the hands of our carceral system.
• 72 cases (22.1%) involved charges with mandatory minimum sentences. 
• Demographic breakdowns were only available for 89 of the 326 criminal cases, however, fifty-two percent of the defendants identify as Black, and of the Black defendants, 91% were male.

“This report highlights just how vigorously the federal government attempted to disrupt the necessary work of those in the struggle for Black liberation,” said Princess Masilungan of CLEAR. “The findings only confirm what Black organizers and movement leaders already understood: The federalization of protest-related charges was a deliberate and cynical effort to target and discourage those who protested in defense of Black lives. Everyday Americans are now facing prison sentences in more distant locations, higher maximums and mandatory minimums, and no chance of parole as a result of exercising their First Amendment rights. Incarceration often leads to income and job loss along with the separation of families. It not only harms the individual but also their families, organizations, and communities.”

Following the uprisings in the summer of 2020, several states and localities across the United States continue to introduce stronger laws and punishments that will unfairly target protesters of color. In 2021, more than 80 anti-protest bills have been introduced, with eight states passing legislation. 

In light of the report’s findings, the Movement for Black Lives and CLEAR are calling on Congressional leaders to take action through the passage of the BREATHE Act, demanding amnesty for all prisoners involved in the uprisings, and calling for the abolition of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF). 

“As the findings in this report are taken into consideration, I urge activists and allies across the nation to be emboldened by the fact that despite repeated attacks, our movement is making progress. In the face of fascism, we refuse to relent but rather, we will continue to push and build the power of Black organizing,” added Dr. Enyia. Read the report here.

July 7, 2021

The Movement for Black Lives Celebrates BREATHE Act Anniversary

One year after its historic unveiling, the bill that presented a visionary framework to reshape public safety inspires local, state and federal legislation 

New York, NY — Today, the Movement for Black Lives marked the year anniversary of the unveiling of the BREATHE Act–inspired by the Vision for Black Lives, an omnibus bill born out of the George Floyd protests and rooted in the vision of 60 Black-led community organizations to reimagine public safety proactively and as a public health imperative for Black communities. 

“In the year since we unveiled BREATHE, we protested to defend Black lives, helped pass landmark legislation to make a wholesale shift in our approach to public safety in Illinois, and organized to participate in elections to build Black political power– all in the midst of a deadly pandemic,” said Gina Clayton-Johnson, architect of BREATHE Act, member of the leadership team of M4BL Policy Table, and executive director and co-founder of Essie Justice Group. “We know what keeps us safe. That is why 90 percent of the BREATHE Act proposes investments in our communities. Legislation like The People’s Response Act takes important steps to not only physically locate community safety outside of our criminal-legal system and inside of our largest health-focused institution, but to also make the sort of investments that actually keep Black people safe, repair past harm imposed by systemic racism and the War on Drugs, and end the criminalization of Black people.”

In every corner of this country M4BL has organized, protested, and voted against wanton police violence, against apathy towards hundreds of thousands of deaths from COVID-19, and for health care, living wages, education – and Black futures. 

In the year since M4BL unveiled the BREATHE Act: 

• More than two-thirds of Americans affirm that Black Lives Matter—a dramatic shift in public opinion from even five years ago. 
• A new generation of movement-aligned Black leaders was elected to Congress, including the elections of Cori Bush, Jamaal Bowman, Ritchie Torres, and Mondaire Jones. Congresswomen Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were reelected by large margins despite strong opposition. 
• Police ballot initiatives designed to fundamentally change policing received overwhelming support from voters in more than a dozen cities. 
• Nearly a dozen major cities also elected progressive district attorneys, including Georgia. 
• Communities won over $840m in direct cuts from US police departments and at least $160m investments in community services. In 25 cities, such as Denver and Oakland, officials moved to remove police from schools, saving an additional $34m.
• Portland, Oregon, cut $15m from its budget and disbanded a gun violence reduction unit and transit team that had both long been accused of over-policing Black communities. 
• San Francisco officials pledged to divest $120m from police over two years with plans to invest in health programs and workforce training. 
• Minneapolis reinvested $2 million in community-based violence prevention programs and a new mobile mental health team to respond to certain 911 calls.
• Austin, Texas reallocated over $20m from their police department to emergency medical services for Covid-19, community medics, mental health first responders, services for homeless people, substance abuse programs, food access, workforce development, abortion services, victim support, parks and more. The city spent 40% of its budget on the police; it now spends 26%.

Last year, in the wake of the Floyd uprisings, The Movement for Black Lives unveiled the BREATHE Act, an omnibus framework based on the Vision for Black Lives, a collective platform of more than 50 organizations representing thousands of Black people from across the country in 2015. In 2020, the Vision for Black Lives became the basis for a visionary bill to divest taxpayer dollars from brutal and discriminatory policing and invest in a new vision of public safety. Since, over 150,000 people have signed on as community co-sponsors of the BREATHE Act. 

###

www.breatheact.org

June 28, 2021

Contact: m4bl@berlinrosen.com

The Movement for Black Lives Announces Support for The People’s Response Act

The People’s Response Act represents a wholesale shift toward health-based approaches to keep Black people safe.

Washington, D.C. — Today Representative Cori Bush (D-Mo), along with Congresswomen Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Jan Schakowsky (IL-06), Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) introduced The People’s Response Act, federal legislation that provides vital investments in community and public health-centered approaches to keeping Black people safe in America. It establishes a new federal division within the Department of Health and Human Services to oversee this division. The Movement for Black Lives announced support for the bill, which catalyzes decades of organizing efforts in policy while incentivizing states and local governments to invest in alternatives to policing and incarceration.

“When we were protesting in the streets of Ferguson to get justice for Mike Brown Jr., our demands were clear,” said Congresswoman Cori Bush. “When we were protesting all across the country to get justice for George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, our demands were clear. We demanded a new system of public safety that prioritized care over criminalization, healing over incarceration, and prevention over policing. With the People’s Response Act, we’re building a future where Black, brown, Indigenous, and marginalized communities can live full and joyous lives. Our communities deserve a just response, a new response, and a better response. I am proud to introduce the People’s Response Act, in partnership with community, and alongside my colleagues Reps. Pressley, Jayapal, and Schakowsky, and a fast-growing number of congressional colleagues. We are legislating to save lives.”

“The People’s Response Act is transformative legislation that puts us on the path toward achieving our full vision of safety for all Black people. It moves us toward a shared vision of what truly keeps Black people safe: dramatic investments in communities that have suffered from generations of systemic racism and economic exploitation, incentives for local governments to adopt critical non-carceral practices, and the creation of a federal community safety agency to make the critical link between public safety and public health,” said Kayla Reed, executive director of Action St. Louis and leader of the Movement for Black Lives’ Electoral Justice Project. “We demand legislators hold a hearing for the People’s Response Act and move the bill towards passage. We know what it takes to keep our communities safe, that is why we will organize to support Rep. Bush and bill co-sponsors to make this approach real for Black people.” 

The People’s Response Act:

• Creates a federal first responders unit that will support state and local governments with emergency health crises, as well as a First Responders Hiring Grant to fund non-carceral first responders;

• Creates a grant program that funds community-based organizations to implement non-carceral, non-punitive investments in community safety—investments in the programs and services that our people actually need to be safe. Things like mental health, violence interruption, youth programs, treatment, and so much more; 

• Creates a grant program that funds and incentivizes state and local governments to shrink their criminal-legal systems and invest in community-led, non-carceral, non-punitive approaches to public safety; and 

• Establishes a federal body (“Division of Community Safety” at the Department of Health and Human Services) to oversee grantmaking, research coordination, and other support for non-carceral, non-punitive approaches to public safety. 

The People’s Response Act is supported by the Movement for Black Lives, which represents a network of 150 Black-led organizations across the country. Rep. Bush’s rise to Congress is rooted in her experiences during the Ferguson uprising and her personal experiences with oppressive systems that harm Black people daily. More than 70 organizations have thrown their support behind the bill representing a wholesale shift away from systems rooted in oppression to create federal infrastructure for a non-carceral, health-centered, and preventative paradigm for community safety. 

“This is what electoral justice looks like – doing what it takes to keep Black people safe. We applaud Rep. Bush and Rep. Pressley’s bold, courageous leadership in sponsoring a bill that supports real community safety and provides health-focused infrastructure that protects and defends Black lives proactively,” added Reed. 
Last year, in the wake of the Floyd uprisings, The Movement for Black Lives unveiled the BREATHE Act, an omnibus framework based on the Vision for Black Lives, a collective platform of more than 50 organizations representing thousands of Black people from across the country in 2015. In 2020, the Vision for Black Lives became the basis for a visionary bill to divest our taxpayer dollars from brutal and discriminatory policing and invest in a new vision of public safety.

### 

The Movement for Black Lives is a national network of more than 150 leaders and organizations creating a broad political home for Black people to learn, organize and take action. M4BL includes activists, organizers, academics, lawyers, educators, health workers, artists and more, all unified in a radical vision for Black liberation and working for equity, justice and healing.

April 20, 2021

Contact: press@m4bl.org

Movement for Black Lives Statement on Derek Chauvin Trial

MINNEAPOLIS– After Derek Chauvin was found guilty by jury of all three charges against him for the murder of George Floyd, Karissa Lewis, National Field Director of the Movement for Black Lives, issued the following statement: 

“George Floyd should still be alive, full stop. Derek Chauvin’s guilty verdict doesn’t fix an irredeemable, racist system of policing rooted in white supremacy that will continue working against and harming Black people just as designed. Minnesota police couldn’t even go the full length of the trial without taking the life of another Black person, and now we’re grieving for Daunte Wright just as we continue to grieve for George Floyd. This repeat cycle of police killings, trials, and no real substantive systemic change has to stop. Now is the time for a complete reimagining of public safety in the United States, so that no more fathers, mothers, daughters, sons, children, siblings or loved ones are lost to the hands of state violence. It’s past time to divest from an institution that consistently proves itself to be deadly, and invest in a system of safety that protects us all. Our calls for defunding the police will continue to grow louder with each police murder. We will not give up fighting until Black people and communities get the justice and liberation they deserve.” 

### 

The Movement for Black Lives is a national network of more than 150 leaders and organizations creating a broad political home for Black people to learn, organize and take action. M4BL includes activists, organizers, academics, lawyers, educators, health workers, artists and more, all unified in a radical vision for Black liberation and working for equity, justice and healing.

September 23, 2020

Contact: press@m4bl.org

MOVEMENT FOR BLACK LIVES STATEMENT ON THE ANNOUNCEMENT IN THE KILLING OF BREONNA TAYLOR

ATLANTA – The Movement for Black Lives issued the following statement after the Attorney General of Kentucky announced a meaningless indictment of first degree wanton endangerment against one of the three police officers who killed Breonna Taylor in her home on the night of March 13, 2020. Wanton endangerment, a low-level felony, is a charge often used in accidental injuries and implies minimal responsibility for the death or injury.

“The Movement for Black Lives and our millions of supporters around the globe stand with the family and community of Breonna Taylor in light of today’s toothless and gravely insufficient indictment brought against one of the officers who killed her. Alongside her community, we are outraged and prepared to activate our base to continue to organize for meaningful action for Breonna. 

“Even though three officers have Breonna’s blood on their hands, only one was charged, and with three counts of first degree wanton endangerment, a class D felony implying a low-level of responsibility for the death or injury. This charge is connected to shooting into the neighboring apartment unit, but not the murder of Breonna Taylor. To be sure, a wall — an inanimate object– has received more justice than Breonna Taylor did today. 

“This indictment is another clear and egregious reminder that the criminal-legal system in Louisville – and in this country – does not value Black people or see us as deserving of protection from those who’ve taken an oath to ‘protect and serve.’   

“For months, millions of outraged people in every state have called for all three officers responsible for Breonna’s murder to be fired, arrested, and charged with murder. Today’s paltry announcement is a grave miscarriage of justice — just like those in the cases of Alton Sterling, Jamar Clark, Terrence Crutcher, and countless others. 

“This decision, which was handed down 41 days before the most critical election in U.S. modern history, is intended to enable state-sanctioned violence against all Black communities and to obstruct people from asserting their first amendment right to protest.

“The Kentucky Attorney General shared his insufficient and faulty rationale for this decision during a press conference, condescending to a community that has been here countless times before. We know that Grand Juries indict 99.9 percent of the time, meaning prosecutors have tremendous power in what they choose to present. When Grand Juries do not indict, it is often because of a lack of will on the part of the state. To date, there have been no systemic changes in light of Breonna’s killing. The changes around no-knock warrants passed as part of Breonna’s Law do not cover the majority of warrants that result in unnecessary surprise invasions into people’s homes, and the commitment in the settlement to policy reform does not make substantive changes. 

“We will continue fighting to hold all three officers who killed Breonna accountable, to defund the Louisville police department and re-envision what public safety looks like in our country. We won’t stop until ALL Black people can live and thrive without fear of harm from the state. 

“We’re calling for all those who stand in defense of Black lives to support organizations in Louisville as they continue to mobilize people in this moment. If you’re able, send donations to:

Louisville Community Bail Fund:  bit.ly/LouCommBailFund

BLM General Fund: bit.ly/BLMLou

Anti Eviction Fund: bit.ly/evictionfund

Healing for Louisville: bit.ly/502healing

The six local demands are crystal clear: 

1. Immediately fire and revoke the pensions of the officers that murdered Breonna. 
2. Divest from LMPD and Invest in community building.
3. The immediate resignation (or impeachment) of Mayor Greg Fischer. 
4. Metro Council ends use of force by Louisville Metro Police Department. 
   1. Police shootings are gun violence.
5. A local, civilian community police accountability council that is independent from the Mayor’s Office and LMPD with investigation and discipline power #CPAC.
6. The creation of policy to ensure transparent investigation processes. 

“As we support our comrades in Louisville, we remain committed to the introduction and success of the BREATHE Act, the 21st century federal civil rights bill that divests from the harms of the criminal-legal system and invests in safe, healthy, and equitable communities. While today was another devastating day for those of us who believe in justice, and particularly for Breonna Taylor’s family and the families of others we’ve lost to state violence, they are not alone. 

The Movement for Black Lives will continue to carry Breonna with us as we march forward in pursuit of the justice we all deserve.”

### 

The Movement for Black Lives is a national network of more than 150 leaders and organizations creating a broad political home for Black people to learn, organize and take action. M4BL includes activists, organizers, academics, lawyers, educators, health workers, artists and more, all unified in a radical vision for Black liberation and working for equity, justice and healing.