#BlackoutBlackFriday: A National Call To Boycott Black Friday For Ferguson And Beyond Protests in Ferguson, Missouri, have spread nationwide in the past few days, and activists are continuing to speak out against injustice as they plan another peaceful protest -- only this time, its targeted at Black Friday. People nationwide are actively participating in the movement. In California, one protest even led to a temporary shutdown of the West Oakland BART train station as demonstrators forced commuters to find alternative routes of travel. The mission, which is identified and spread online through #BlackoutBlackFriday and #NotOneDime, aims to boycott large retailers on one of the countrys biggest shopping days of the year. In doing so, protesters aim to take a stand in the fight for economic freedom and equal human rights. Blackout For Human Rights, the organization at the helm of the nationwide effort, is composed of a network of artists, activists, filmmakers and lawyers who fight to address inequalities and injustice in America. In the wake of #Ferguson, its become painfully clear that people of color, and Black people in particular, are still unjustly targeted by law enforcement and the criminal justice system, reads a statement on BlackoutBlackFriday.org. The group was created in October by Ryan Coogler, the director of the 2013 award-winning film Fruitvale Station. The film told the story of Oscar Grant, an Oakland, California, teenager who was shot on New Years Day 2009 by police officers at a train station in Los Angeles and whose death sparked immediate outrage from the community. The lack of indictment in the deaths of Michael Brown of Ferguson, MO, John Crawford III of Ohio, and many, many more victims of police deaths are unacceptable in this modern society. To that end, we will cease spending money on American retail corporations until a change is made, the website continues. The hashtag #BlackoutBlackFriday has populated online as the movement is quickly gaining steam. Among some of the more notable names who have actively spread awareness of the campaign online are business mogul Russell Simmons, actor Jesse Williams and TV personality Niecy Nash. Many users have also changed their profile pictures on various social media accounts to all-black images as they stand in solidarity with the movements mission.
Posted on: Fri, 28 Nov 2014 20:55:58 +0000