Black Lives Matter: Is Change Really Coming?
Black Lives Matter: How We Save Ourselves.
I want this time to be different and there are moments when I think it might be.
Roxane Gay
By Roxane Gay.Contributing Opinion Writer.June 20, 2020
Image: A new street sign at the intersection of H and 16th Street near the White House in Washington DC.Credit...Roberto Schmidt/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Corporations finally believe black lives matter. Or they at least understand that they have to make it look like they believe black lives matter.
From Microsoft and Peloton to the National Football League — the same league whose teams shunned Colin Kaepernick after his peaceful protest — they have released carefully crafted messages affirming that they are committed to diversity and inclusion, that they stand in solidarity with their black employees. You can ask Amazon’s virtual assistant Alexa if black lives matter and she will respond, “Black lives matter. I believe in racial equality.”
This messaging is curious. There have been several incidents of police brutality in recent years and, back then, the response from corporate America was nothing like this. This time, for some reason, executives seem to have decided that their brands will be best supported by engaging in an elaborate performance of allyship."
Black Lives Matter: Is Change Really Coming?