Black Lives Matter ( BLM ) is a decentralized political and social movement that seeks to highlight racism , discrimination , and racial inequality experienced by black people . Its primary concerns are incidents of police brutality and racially motivated violence against black people. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] It started following the killings of Trayvon Martin , Michael Brown , Eric Garner , and Rekia Boyd , among others. The movement and its related organizations typically advocate for various policy chang
The movement began in July 2013, with the use of the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on social media after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of African-American teen Trayvon Martin 17 months earlier in February 2012. It became nationally recognized for street demonstrations following the 2014 deaths of two more African Americans, Michael Brown —resulting in protests and unrest in Ferguson, Missouri , a city near St. Louis —and Eric Garner in New York City. [11] [12] Since the Ferguson protes
The movement returned to national headlines and gained further international attention during the global George Floyd protests in 2020 following his murder by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin . [15] [16] An estimated 15 million to 26 million people participated in the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests in the United States, making it one of the largest movements in the country's history. [17] It comprised many views and a broad array of demands but they centered on criminal justice reform .