Could we see the true Black Lives Matter movement being hijacked?

[diabeticman]

If people remembered the Tea Party originally start out of people pissed off at the Bank Bailout THEN the GOP nuts,racists and birthers hijacked the movement.

[hollysmom]

1. I don't remember it that way,

I remember the tea party being promoted on FOX before it existed and the buses and stuff that went around to old people organizations, paid for by the Kochs, This was a wholly imaginary movement until it got real with enough advertising and free stuff.

[BillZBubb]

4. Exactly. Sad people's memories are so short.

The TP was the product of right wing slob Dick Armey, bankrolled by the Kochs and pushed by Faux.

In propaganda it was touted as non-partisan, but the reality was that it was a ultra-right republican group.

[Hydra]

5. Exactly

There never was a Tea party, just a bunch of Republican money and paid protesters. There were never very many at any of the events, but the cameras sure followed them...

[csziggy]

7. Rick Santelli on CNBC had a tea party rant - that wa the start

Though there were some indications that Tea Party domain names were purchased before that.

Uploaded on Feb 19, 2009

[emsimon33]

2. Probably

What better way to silence Bernie and suppress the African American vote.

[villager]

8. It's a twofer. And the usual suspects remain in power, laughing all the way

n/t

[Hydra]

3. No, I think they made a deal with the devil

And she's not likely to hold up her end now that they flubbed their end of it.

[BillZBubb]

6. BLM hijacked itself.

It's leaders, however they got to be so, are politically clueless.

[H2O Man]

9. Interesting.

I find the OP and responses to be worth responding to.

The "tea party" actually began as a grass roots movement, when George W. Bush was in office. The originators attempted to appeal to Democrats and independents, who believed that the national leaders from both major parties had betrayed a constitutional form of government. This included a major focus upon the need for people to be aware of infringements upon the Bill of Rights.

In 2008-09, the republican party's financiers -- using people such as Dick Armory -- began funneling money to the tea party. Once they dropped the dollar, they managed to grab the reins. It went from a small, non-partisan grass roots movement, to the right-wing of the republican party.

BLM is, of course, distinct. However, one could question if people from the national ("moneyed&quot level have a slightly different agenda than the original grass roots movement.

[Marr]

11. That's how I remember it, too. Dick Armey came along with 1%er money and coopted it for the GOP.

Santelli's famous rant on MSNBC was part of the transitional marketing push as it was turned into a far-right astroturf front, but didn't actually spark it.

[davidn3600]

12. Possibly but a higher chance it will fizzle out just like OcuppyWallStreet

Especially when the election is over and Hillary wins. There is no one to attack. Hillary keeps the status quo and the movement won't want to attack a Democrat, especially not the first female president.....just like they won't attack Obama even though the FBI he's in charge of is directly spying on BLM.

[alcibiades_mystery]

13. BLM is the only protest movement worth a damn in today's America

And a lot of racist so-called progressives are sure enough showing their asses today.

[Ron Green]

14. If it's worth a damn they damn well ought to protest your candidate.

As an agent for the Masters of Capital, she enables the racist and toxic culture that's diminishing, imprisoning and ending black lives daily.

[Populist_Prole]

18. Bingo

Barking up the wrong tree comes to mind.

[Lizzie Poppet]

21. Priceless...to Hillary.

And anyone who calls me "racist" for pointing out that the BLM movement seems to be foolishly cutting its own throat with incredibly ill-considered, self-indulgent, counterproductive actions can go fuck themselves.

[Truprogressive85]

15. So Blm is being hijacked by whom?

We are getting killed by police

On issues of gun control are police going to get their gun taken as well

On the issues on body can who and when can police turn off the can

[alcibiades_mystery]

16. The blacks, of course

If only they'd listen to politically savvy white progressives who have been so successful in pushing their own agendas in the last 30 years!

If only!

[hay rick]

17. Yes.

Disrupting Bernie events does not seem like an appropriate response to police violence against blacks. Disrupting Republican events or disrupting events for all presidential candidates, including Hillary, would make a whole lot more sense. Question: are BLM protests against other candidates going unreported? If so, the media is doing the hijacking.

[pampango]

19. Any progressive movement COULD be hijacked though it is less likely than conservative

movements which appeal directly to those whose politics support Big Money.

If there is evidence that BLM or any other progressive movement has been hijacked that is something we all should know. Floating that possibility because my ox is being gored seems a bit disingenuous. Perhaps any Democratic politician whom progressive protesters target wonders whether they have an ulterior motive or have been hijacked.

Protesters should always know that their motives will likely be questioned by those they target. There are smart, effective ways to protest and ways that are counterproductive in the long run. It is fair to question the effectiveness of protesting at Bernie's events and not at those of others but questioning their motives is a step too far without evidence.

[Igel]

20. "True Black Lives Matter movement"?

It's a group of self-identified people, mostly on social media, who have a couple of main points they want pushed.

That's the core of the movement, as I see it. All the rest is undetermined: What other issues, what protests get pulled where, how they're run. The leaders are unofficial and recognized by many but not by all, and not even by most (how do you validate 'leadership' status?); there's no official charter, no statement of purpose that defines the borders and limits of the group, no code of conduct that says, "Do this, and you're out."

The "true BLM movement" is the set of protestors and protests and statements you agree with. But for somebody else, it's a different set. Without making it formal, without making it in some sense hierarchical and organized, there is no "true BLM movement." At this late stage, a year after it's started, even that may not be enough.

The thing about a loose, informal group of people is that it can easily be co-opted, so the leaders don't represent the majority. If it's a very cohesive group, then it may stay together with a lot of unhappy people who figure it's gotta do what they want it to do--if not, it would splinter, like the Tea Party 'movement' did. A loose group can also be tightened into a mob; it can be redefined on the fly if the majority change course; it can even differ from place to place, so that the primary goals in Seattle may not be the primary goals in Lubbock.

[Lee-Lee]

22. Hijacked? No. Poorly led, yes

And that is part of the problem with movements that are essentially leaderless where the most attention and media title of "leaders" goes simply to those who are the loudest and most obnoxious because they get the attention and coverage.

The loudest and most in your face are getting the attention, regardless of how effective their messaging is while doing it. And as a result possibly doing more harm than good by distracting from the rest of the movement and making the public face of the movement rude, demanding protesters behaving more or less like petulant spoiled children throwing a tantrum and calling probably the most liberal crowd in town "white supremacists".