The
Black Lives Matter Global Network touts itself as a civil rights movement whose
purpose is to oppose racism and police misconduct. So far, so good —
there is not one decent person in this entire country who supports racism or
police misconduct. (I do not regard white supremacists, or their
non-white counterparts such as Louis Farrakhan, as decent people.) Its
real priorities, however, seem to lie elsewhere.
Civil Rights? Where?
Let's
look first at what BLM is actually doing to promote civil rights and remedy the
problems about which it complains. The home
page includes a video called "Now We Transform," which
proclaims, "This is the revolution. Change is coming." It
includes a video of a candlelit rally reminiscent of some torchlit ones in
1930s Germany, and it adds, "This is the watershed moment that brought the
world to its knees." Information about your civil rights as a
peaceful protester seems, however, to be in short supply.
BLM
and its supporters complain that "fascists," "Gestapo," or
whatever are beating up "protesters," throwing them in unmarked vans,
and making them disappear as might happen in a totalitarian dictatorship.
Has BLM helped the purported victims of these actions — and I have seen a
few videos of questionable use of force by police — use the numerous remedies
that are readily at hand under our country's laws? Conservatives and
centrists support the First Amendment as much as (or more than) the
"woke" left, so it seems we will have to step in to educate
demonstrators, including those with whom we disagree, about their rights and
recourses if those rights are violated.
These
rights, however, apply only to peaceful and lawful protest. Nobody has
the right to obstruct a road or sidewalk, threaten another person physically,
invade private property, vandalize property, loot, commit arson, or assault
police officers. You can't throw a rock at a cop and then expect an
attorney to represent you for false arrest when he handcuffs you and reads you
your rights, or for a civil rights violation if the cop reciprocates your
violence with pepper spray or a baton round. If you obstruct a highway,
the question is no longer whether a cop can use physical force to remove you;
the question is only how much is reasonable and necessary.
Now
let's assume that you are peacefully holding up a sign in a place where you
have the right to be, and it doesn't matter whether I or anybody else agrees
with what your sign says. It is a federal crime to
deprive somebody of his First Amendment rights under color of law. While
I can't give legal advice, it looks as though if, for example, the
"Gestapo" uses a nightstick, rubber bullet, Taser, or other
"dangerous weapon" on somebody for exercising a First Amendment
right, that's punishable by up to ten years in prison. I have yet to see
any BLM entity do anything to connect victims of alleged police misconduct with attorneys who
handle civil rights violations, or with genuine civil rights organizations such
as the American Civil Liberties Union.
If the "Gestapo" really does handcuff you or throw you into an
unmarked van for your lawful exercise of your First Amendment rights, you can
also do a Google search on "false arrest" and "contingency"
to find lawyers in your state who will represent you in exchange for a share of
any resulting judgment.
Here, meanwhile, is where you can file a
complaint for deprivation of civil rights under color of law. This can
include not just use of police authority to punish somebody for criticizing the
government, but also false arrest or excessive force in making an otherwise
lawful arrest. In addition, "the Department of Justice [has]
authority to seek civil remedies in cases where law enforcement agencies have
policies or practices that foster a pattern of misconduct by employees.
This action is directed against an agency, not against individual
officers." What, if anything, has BLM done to use these DOJ
resources to compel police agencies to train their officers properly and
discipline the Derek Chauvins of
the world who are not amenable to the training?
What Really Matters to BLM: Using Tax-Exempt Resources to
Influence the Election
The
Black Lives Matter movement is therefore taking little identifiable action to
correct the problems about which it complains, so what is its real priority?
BLM Global Network's #WhatMatters2020 web page provides the answer:
"BLM's #WhatMatters2020 is a campaign aimed to maximize the impact of the
BLM movement by galvanizing BLM
supporters and allies to the polls in the 2020 U.S Presidential Election to
build collective power[.]"
This
is emphatically not a politically neutral get-out-the vote effort.
"Black Lives Matter Global Network's Statement Regarding
Michael Cohen's Testimony" says openly, "[W]e are reminded that the
2020 election is around the corner. We
can make our voices heard by voting this Administration out of office."
Here is a video in which BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors says
openly, "[W]e are going to push for is a move to get Trump out[.] ... Our goal is to get Trump out."
BLM
Global Networks is supported by ActBlue Charities, the 501(c)(3)
tax-exempt arm of ActBlue, "a
powerful online fundraising platform for Democratic candidates up and down the
ballot, progressive organizations, and nonprofits[.]" IRS regulations forbid
501(c)(3) tax-exempt money to be used to endorse or oppose any political
candidate. The use of tax-deductible donations via ActBlue Charities to
support BLM's anti-Trump campaign therefore looks highly problematic. The
same goes for the resources of BLM's fiscal sponsor, Thousand Currents. Note, however, that
donations via ActBlue Charities do not go
to the Democratic Party or the Biden campaign; they go to BLM Global Networks
itself, which, as shown above, is trying to influence the election.
The
Democratic National Committee, meanwhile, has a web page that
connects directly with BLM Global Network and another BLM page. Voters need to
assess the complete depth of the DNC's coordination with BLM to be fully
informed prior to this year's election.
Civis
Americanus is the pen name of a contributor who remembers the lessons of
history and wants to ensure that our country never needs to learn those lessons
again the hard way. The author is remaining anonymous due to the likely
prospect of being subjected to "cancel culture" for exposing the Big
Lie behind Black Lives Matter.
34 Shot, 9 Fatally, over Weekend in Mayor Lightfoot’s Chicago
2:46
Thirty-four people were shot, nine fatally, over the weekend in Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s (D) Chicago.
On August 2, 2020, Breitbart News reported 21 people had been shot, six fatally, Friday through Saturday afternoon alone.
On Monday morning the Chicago Sun-Times reported the weekend concluded with at least 34 shot, nine fatally.
NBC5 reported the fatal shootings began with someone opening fire shortly after 6 p.m. Friday on a nine-year-old boy who was playing in a parking lot. The boy was shot in the chest and pronounced dead at the hospital.
The Sun-Times reported the nine-year-old’s name was Janari Ricks.
The last fatal shooting of the weekend was a drive-by shooting that occurred just before 1 p.m. Sunday. Thirty-eight-year-old Allen Britten was outside “standing in the 6400 block of South Green Street” when a vehicle pulled up and an occupant opened fire.
Briteen was hit in the head and back and pronounced dead at the scene.
Two 28-year-old men were shot and killed approximately six hours earlier in Lawnsdale.
On August 1, 2020, Breitbart News reported Mayor Lightfoot’s Chicago witnessed a 139 percent increase in murders in July 2020, compared to July 2019. ABC7 reported there were 105 murders in July 2020, up from “the 44 reported in July 2019.”
Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s (D) Chicago witnessed a 139 percent increase in murder during July 2020 when compared to July 2019. https://t.co/cIqSRDNS4g— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) August 1, 2020
Lightfoot used a July 26, 2020, appearance on CNN”s State of the Union to blame Chicago’s violence on out-of-state guns.
On July 29, 2020, Breitbart News reported Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosive (ATF) numbers showing that the majority of guns recovered and traced in Illinois in 2018 were originally sourced in Illinois.
In fact, more guns recovered in Illinois were sourced to Illinois that were sourced to Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Texas, Ohio, Georgia, Iowa, Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, and Michigan, combined.
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.
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