Can We Have a Talk About the Lack of Black Allies?

"You're treating me like a Black person!"

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

If you're a Black American, you've definitely heard the phrase, "Black people have no allies." Nevertheless, the global support of the Black Lives Matter/George Floyd protests may have convinced you otherwise. Anyway, after all that marching, shouting, looting, and rioting, the substantial changes amounted to a bunch of murals, street art, broken windows, and broken promises.

And before you start, yes, I vividly recall the allegations against certain members of the BLM organization. Many people have used that to justify pulling their "support" from BLM and the Black community altogether. To that, I have a few things to say:

• BLM does not represent the entire Black community: One movement could never represent or fully encompass the Black community. BLM created an irrefutable mantra for anyone who values the human collective — Black lives matter. Many of us used the phrase independently of the organization, and leaders within the organization were by no means elected officials of the Black collective. They created one of the most recognized Black organizations in this country, but they are by no means the only one.
• BLM was "hijacked": BLM as we know it is not what it once was. Some of the original leaders left the…