The Controversy over "Black Lives Matter": A Big (and Typical) Misunderstanding

"Black Lives Matter" really means "Black Lives Matter, Too"

When Martin O’Malley said, “Black lives matter, white lives matter, all lives matter”, a great backlash resulted. The backlash came from people who emphasize that “Black lives matter” and have turned the assertion into a slogan. Of course, O’Malley’s statement in and of itself is perfectly valid, but the statement in and of itself is not being disputed. What is being disputed is the false equivalence implied by the statement.

People who say “Black lives matter” are working from a certain premise. Their premise could be right or wrong, but before their position is attacked, that premise ought to be understood. The indignant response to the criticism of those who retort “All lives matter” shows serious misunderstanding of the issue.

Perhaps there are people who believe that black lives matter more than white ones or other ones. But for most of those saying “Black lives matter”, their motivating belief is that black lives have been, and remain, particularly undervalued in our society. That’s what I’m calling their premise. 

It should not be controversial to say that historically, black people have been valued less and treated particularly badly, or at least, valued less and treated worse than whites. There is legitimate debate over how much this injustice has been corrected, and how much of the disparity remains. But people should not be faulted for thinking that some anti-black discrimination—official, structural, or otherwise—remains. And when they say in response to the killing of a black person by a police officer that “Black lives matter”, their protest should be understood for what it is—a protest against the undervaluing of black lives, not a claim that other lives don’t matter.

Since the claim that non-black lives don’t matter is not (generally) being made, therefore, the retort that “All lives matter” is beside the point. Of course all lives matter, but when that statement is made in this context, it suggests that the particularly discriminatory treatment of blacks historically and to some extent presently is not a fact.

So even if you do not agree that black lives remain undervalued compared to white lives, you should at least understand where those emphasizing the value of black lives are coming from. To emphasize the value of a persecuted group is not to deny the value of other groups, but to emphasize the value of other groups in response is to deny (or at least minimize) the undervaluing of the persecuted group. So "Black Lives Matter" really means "Black Lives Matter As Much, So Please Treat Them Accordingly". Maybe not as pithy a slogan, but thoughtful people should be able to infer the left-out part.