D.C. Judge Orders Proud Boys to Pay $1M+ for Destroying BLM Sign at Historic Black Church

Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C.

By: Adonis Armstrong

The Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, a historic institution in Washington, D.C., has recently been granted a default judgment exceeding $1 million in a lawsuit against the Proud Boys. The lawsuit was initiated by the church, situated about six blocks away from the White House, three years ago, accusing over a dozen members of the white supremacist group of vandalizing a Black Lives Matter sign.

A number of individuals affiliated with the organization were alleged to have trespassed onto the premises of the church by scaling a fence, subsequently vandalizing the property by tearing down a Black Lives Matter banner that was securely fastened. This inconsiderate act reportedly occurred in December 2020 during a heated confrontation between supporters and opponents of former President Donald Trump. The lawsuit sought compensation amounting to thousands of dollars, intended for enhancing the church's security measures and acquiring a replacement banner.

On Friday (June 30), Judge Neal E. Kravitz of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia issued a ruling in favor of the institution as the defendants, which included former leader Enrique Tarrio, failed to appear in court. “For generations, the leaders of Metropolitan AME and the members of its congregation have vocally and publicly supported movements for civil rights and racial justice,” Kravitz stated in the ruling acquired by CNN. “Church leaders and congregants view supporting the Black Lives Matter movement as a continuation of the church’s mission of advocacy for civil rights and racial justice.”

As part of the verdict, Kravitz determined that an additional $1 million in punitive damages must be paid. The Proud Boys mentioned in the lawsuit are also enjoined from approaching the church within a 100-yard radius. Moreover, they are prohibited from issuing threats to Reverend William H. Lamar IV, the pastor of the church, and making slanderous statements about him.

“We refuse to live in a nation where that kind of violence has the last word. We will never be silent,” On Saturday July 1st, Reverend William H. Lamar IV conveyed to The New York Times. Yesterday July 2nd, the church commemorated its 185th anniversary.

This decision sends a clear message that acts of hatred and destruction will not be tolerated, and that justice will be served. We hope this serves as a precedent to protect other institutions and communities from similar acts of vandalism and intimidation.

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Black Lives Matter Is Raising Money But Where Is It Going?

By: Kwana Adams

Since its conception in 2013, Black Lives Matter has steadily risen to prominence. With the publicity, they’ve received a lot of money, and with that money came a lot of criticism. In 2020, the BLM Network foundation raised $90 million.

According to their impact report, they donated a quarter of it to BLM chapters and local organizations. There has been a lot of criticism surrounding the BLM Network and where the money they are earning is going. Samaria Rice, the mother of Tamir Rice, has accused BLM and activists of exploiting and profiting off her son’s death and other black people who were victims of police brutality.

She is joined by Lisa Simpson, Richard Risher’s mother, in slamming activists allegedly profiting off black death but not donating to the families affected. They are calling for the organization and other activists to step down and stop using their families’ names to gain recognition. They are also demanding some of the money that BLM has earned, claiming they never saw a penny of it.

Michael Brown Sr, whose son Michael Brown was shot by a police officer in 2014, is demanding $20 million of what BLM made. He received $500 from the BLM Network since 2014. Michael Brown’s case was a high-profile case in Ferguson, Missouri, after courts decided not to indict the police officer who shot him. The shooting itself caused months of protest in Ferguson,, and it was news all over the country.

Although Black Lives Matter was a response to what happened to Trayvon Martin, it was the Ferguson case that really brought it into the spotlight further. Michael Brown was only 18, and he was allegedly shot with his hands up, implying that he was surrendering while the officer was still shooting. This is still something that no one knows for sure is true, but the “Hands up, don’t shoot” slogan was birthed from it.

The biggest thing that upset me about this case and many others like it was that Michael Brown was unarmed, despite whether he actually had his hands up or not. The world began widely questioning why the police keep shooting unarmed black men with no repercussions. 

Michael Brown Sr and other Ferguson activists believe that BLM should donate some of the funding they received to him and the community. They hope to use the money for their “Chosen for Change” foundation, the Mike Brown community center, grants for Ferguson protests and activists, and more, including an annual commemoration of Mike Brown Jr’s death. This is the first year that the network has been open about their finances and Patrisse Cullors, BLM co-founder, says they plan to reinvest the money into their organization and chapters. 

There has been a lot of opinions from both sides on what BLM should do with the money. Some people believe they should be morally obligated to give more money to the families of the victims they gain prominence from. Others believe that they should be allowed to spend the money how they see fit. The whole platform and main purpose of Black Lives Matter is to “eradicate white supremacy, and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on black communities by the state and vigilantes.” No one can deny the work they have done in spreading awareness and organizing protests to demand change. We also can’t deny that the only reason they are able to do this work is because of the families who have lost their loved ones due to a police killing that went unpunished.

They keep their names amplified so that no one forgets them. However, when it comes to assisting these families, I believe they can do better. I personally think they should leave some space in their budget to give to those asking. A lot of these families are tirelessly working in their own communities trying to gain justice and spark change. They are not just simply asking for handouts. Should the BLM Network give some of their money to the families who ask for it or should it be their choice to give and decide the amount they want to give?

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Stop Asian Hate: Support a Cause Without Degrading Another

By: Kwana Adams

There has been a lot of Anti-Asian hate crimes happening all over the world. It’s been a thing since the pandemic started over a year ago, but it has gotten significantly worse over the recent months.

Recently, there was a mass shooting in Georgia that took the life of six out of 8 women of Asian descent. Although the gunman himself claimed the crime was not racially motivated, it’s hard to believe, seeing as though all the victims were of Asian descent and mostly women.

Older people of Asian descent have been the biggest victims of Anti-Asian hate crimes lately too, and it’s hard to ignore or deny the fact that Asian people are being targeted. This is a topic that deserves a lot more attention than it’s getting and people are trying to raise awareness.

However, I’ve noticed something off about the way some people are bringing awareness to this issue…Why is it that people are degrading the Black Lives Matter movement to uplift the Anti-Asian hate crime movement? You know these two issues can co-exist right? And each movement is equally as important. There have been numerous Tik Toks and tweets saying things along the lines of, “Y’all were loud for BLM so why aren’t you being loud for this?” or when a black person commits a crime against an Asian person, here come the “But BLM right?” comments. 

I want to see how passionately people (incl other POC) will stand up for Asians. Those of you who were so vocal w BLM, where are you on the 1900% increase in Asian-directed hate crimes? The violence that has taken many lives (yet we rarely see those stories covered in the media)

— Laura Huang (@LauraHuangLA) February 11, 2021

My question is, why does BLM need to be brought up at all? Why can’t one issue be brought up without trying to degrade another? If people did their research, they would know that the movement didn’t happen overnight.

Black Lives Matter was created in 2012 by three black queer women, Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrisse Cullors. Regardless of what it’s become today, it originally began as a response to Trayvon Martin’s death and the injustice that followed it. It’s grown tremendously since 2012 and that is mostly due to the backlash that it’s received from people who don’t understand what it is.

It started off as a response to police brutality and how the police treat our black bodies. From there, it just grew and grew. Black people have been abused and ignored for so long, that no one could have anticipated this growing as big as it did. Making comments like “But BLM right,” is just anti-black and has no place in these conversations. 

Right girlie. pic.twitter.com/oY28QvrR7F

— Johnny (@garontherun) March 18, 2021

The point I’m trying to make is, it can take time for people to catch wind of important issues. It has nothing to do with people thinking one issue is more important than other. You don’t need to degrade and disrespect one movement to uplift another. And if you’re only bringing up the Anti-Asian hate crime movement, only to bring down the BLM movement, do you even care about that movement, or are you just trying to spew hate?

The other reason the BLM movement was so popular was because black people not only created it, but they refused to let it die. Every single time an injustice was done to a black person, the community rose up. They were in the streets protesting, they were boycotting, they were on social media spreading awareness. All of that contributed to the popularity of BLM.

Creating a movement and making so much noise that people can’t even pretend not to hear you, is why BLM is not going anywhere. Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor… and hundreds more names. There’s a pattern here. There’s a reason we all know their names and it’s because we made sure no one would forget them.

Activists for the Black Lives Matter movement have been jailed, gone missing, or been killed for this movement. It’s so much bigger than people think it is. So when people try to downgrade it, they’re not only disrespecting the movement, but they’re also disrespecting the people who lost their lives behind it. A lot of pain, injustice, and loss went into making BLM as big as it is. 

This may be a hard pill to swallow but the black community is not in charge of making all issues go viral. Stop trying to guilt people into joining a movement when you could be sharing information and raising awareness instead. Black Lives Matter or BLM is not some punchline or retort you can use when there is an issue that’s not getting enough media attention. The Anti-Asian hate crime movement deserves a lot more than that. It is an important issue that deserves a platform that’s not tied to someone else’s movement. Talk about it more.

Let people in your communities know about the hate crimes against the Asian population that’s been happening. Speak to your elected officials. Go out into the streets and protest to get their attention and the attention of the media. Most importantly, make your own movements.  

“Y’all were loud for BLM, but quiet for this,” is not the way to get people involved. Please do better.

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