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Slightly off topic, but I wish BLM would have been BLMT (Black Lives Matter Too), because that extra word ends all of the bickering and back and forth about wha

Slightly off topic, but I wish BLM would have been BLMT (Black Lives Matter Too), because that extra word ends all of the bickering and back and forth about what the movement was about - that we need public policies that respect the lives of black lives also.

ASalazarMX 8y ago
This would have been great. BLM, feminism, etc. should aim for equality first. That's the main problem.
dragonwriter 8y ago
> Slightly off topic, but I wish BLM would have been BLMT (Black Lives Matter Too), “Too” implies afterthought/secondary status. “Too” is, in any case, not part of what BLM is about. That other lives matter is not something BLM as a group denies, of course, its just an issue that is out of scope for the organization. > because that extra word ends all of the bickering No, no it doesn't. > what the movement was about - that we need public policies that respect the lives of black lives also. No, BLM is not centrally a policy advocacy organization.
happytoexplain 8y ago
I disagree that this is a point of confusion. My observation is that the meaning of the phrase (to highlight the disregard for black lives some people hold, not to proclaim that black lives deserve more protection than other lives) is obvious in even the barest of contexts, and a majority of the people claiming otherwise are being willfully naive as a form of attack. I think the idea that the contention is really just simple bickering about semantics is a pretty stark oversimplification.
jinushaun 8y ago
If you think simply appending "Too" to the end of Black Lives Matters would fix anything, then you don't really understand the problem. There is a reason why some segment of the population instinctually read BLM as "Only Black Lives Matter", instead of "Black Lives Also Matter".
sctb 8y ago
We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17594996 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17594996 and marked it off-topic.

ASalazarMX 8y ago

This would have been great. BLM, feminism, etc. should aim for equality first. That's the main problem.

dragonwriter 8y ago

> Slightly off topic, but I wish BLM would have been BLMT (Black Lives Matter Too), “Too” implies afterthought/secondary status. “Too” is, in any case, not part of what BLM is about. That other lives matter is not something BLM as a group denies, of course, its just an issue that is out of scope for the organization. > because that extra word ends all of the bickering No, no it doesn't. > what the movement was about - that we need public policies that respect the lives of black lives also. No, BLM is not centrally a policy advocacy organization.

happytoexplain 8y ago

I disagree that this is a point of confusion. My observation is that the meaning of the phrase (to highlight the disregard for black lives some people hold, not to proclaim that black lives deserve more protection than other lives) is obvious in even the barest of contexts, and a majority of the people claiming otherwise are being willfully naive as a form of attack. I think the idea that the contention is really just simple bickering about semantics is a pretty stark oversimplification.

jinushaun 8y ago

If you think simply appending "Too" to the end of Black Lives Matters would fix anything, then you don't really understand the problem. There is a reason why some segment of the population instinctually read BLM as "Only Black Lives Matter", instead of "Black Lives Also Matter".

sctb 8y ago

We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17594996 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17594996 and marked it off-topic.