'We believe that all lives matter,' co-founder of Black Lives Matter tells F&M audience

LANCASTER -- An activist dubbed one of the "new civil rights leaders" by the Los Angeles Times impassionedly discussed race, social justice issues, equality and why some people misunderstand the Black Lives Matter movement Thursday night.

The diverse crowd of more than 500 people packed into Franklin and Marshall College's Mayser Gymnasium to hear Opal Tometi, one of the co-founders of the Black Lives Matter movement, as a part of the campus "Take Back the Night" event. After a standing ovation from the large crowd, Tometi began a 40-minute speech explaining the need to fight for equality to quell racism, bigotry, homophobia, xenophobia, hate speech and the other issues that she said allow systemic issues to endure.

Tometi also assertively addressed how some interpret Black Lives Matter to be something that is exclusionary or supremacist. Tometi said the movement is about creating a society where everyone can live, love and thrive without any impediments.

"That's what this movement is all about, that's as simple as we could get it," Tometi said. "We actually believe that all lives matter. The movement is really about building a multiracial democracy that works for all of us."

If all lives mattered, we wouldn't have had to create this movement, Tometi said, pointing to incidents across the country where black people were killed under circumstances that led to protests and unrest. Tometi also challenged the notions that the country is post-racial, the premise that people should be colorblind and whether society is accepting of people's differences.

"What this movement has shown us is we can't negate and dismiss [these issues]," Tometi said. "If we're silent, we can't survive."

To loud applause, Tometi said the audience should work to that end by making sure Donald Trump doesn't get elected. She also implored white people to divest from systems of oppression and use privilege to help dismantle white supremacy.

"Lean in to the difficulty, don't feel fragile," Tometi said. "We need white folks to deal with that, have those conversations and build organizations that stand actively against racism.

Finally, before delving into the core of her message, Tometi said that Black Lives Matter and the activists involved aren't endeavoring for a "single-issue struggle." She said people's identities are complex and the issues the group addresses extend to education, housing, economics and many other topics.

"Our movement has so many different contours," Tometi said.

She pointed to the neoconservative agenda that "undermined" communities, dismantled public safety nets and criminalized people. "Hyper-policing" urban communities, poverty, the war on drugs and the prison-industrial complex that have disproportionately "ensnared" blacks -- who make up nearly half of all American prisoners -- were a few of the problems Tometi focused on during the talk.

"I would encourage you to look at the systemic," Tometi said. "If we don't dismantle the way those systems work, we will be in the same cycle."

The origins of the movement trace back to 2013, after George Zimmerman was acquitted of any wrongdoing in the death of Travyon Martin, Tometi explained. Tometi said she, Alicia Garza and Patrisse Cullors created the movement around a Facebook post from Garza.

A screen shot of Alicia Garza's Facebook post that helped launch Black Lives Matter.

That Facebook post helped galvanize Tometi in the fight against the devaluation of black lives, an issue that resounded with her as she has a younger brother who she doesn't want to grow up thinking his life didn't matter.

"I was so compelled by the simplicity of the message and also the power of the message," Tometi said. "The ability of those three words to open up our imaginations -- I was moved."

Tometi urged the audience to take action and work together to change the world. She said everyone can get involved, whether it is a minor contribution or taking a leadership role: Whatever gift you have, use it for justice, Tometi said.

"Commit yourselves to taking actions for justice," Tometi said. "We need a diverse movement with various strategies to get us there."

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