The black lives matter slogan started after Trayvon Martin’s death in 2012. It garnered a massive following since then and gave rise to the Black Lives Matter association. In the wake of George Floyd’s murder, the slogan has been trending more than ever. It’s on social media, graffiti, corporate emails, merchandise, and probably an indelible mark on someone’s skin.
Despite its popularity, I don’t use it. I want nothing to do with the slogan or movement. Here are my reasons.
It is unbiblical
Black lives do matter. God created us in His image, and we are valuable to Him (Genesis 1:26; 9:6). But it’s unbiblical to elevate black people over other ethnic groups. If I protest and say black lives matter whenever a black person is killed unjustly, but keep quiet when someone of another ethnicity is killed brutally, I am partial. Partiality is a sin. God is not partial (Romans 2:11), and neither should we (James 2:1).
When a man dies of police brutality as George Floyd did, his death is tragic because he was an image-bearer of the Most High God. His skin color is as relevant as the color of his eyes.
People often say they don’t mean black lives are more important than others. But since black people are under attack, they highlight them. I have two problems with this reasoning.
First, it implies that black people are disproportionately affected by police brutality, and they are victims of systemic racism. A famous Athlete even said black people are “literally being hunted down.” That isn’t true. Police brutality affects all ethnicities. Studies even show that white people are more likely to get killed by the police. We think blacks get killed more because the media (and us) only publicize the death of black men. A white man died in similar circumstances as George Floyd, and it barely got any coverage, nor did it get a single protest.
As for systemic racism, I have yet to see any laws or policies that target black people like Jim Crow or slavery. I never felt held back because of the color of my skin, and I know many other blacks who would say the same. It’s discrimination and prejudice on an individual level that still exists. And even here, blacks are not the only victims. I have witnessed more bigotry and hate speech from black people towards whites than the opposite.
Second, even if black people were indeed under attack, it is not an excuse to be partial. When the children of Israel were slaves in Egypt, Moses didn’t go to the Pharaoh, saying Israelites lives matter. When Christians were persecuted for their faith, Paul—or the saints throughout the ages—didn’t start a movement saying Christian lives matter. Shouldn’t we follow their example?
The Imago Dei is a sufficient rallying point for justice. Adding color is not only unnecessary but is divisive.
It promotes the Black Lives Matter organization
Black Lives Matter is an anti-Christian organization. They are pro-Marxists, pro-LGBTQ, pro-abortion, anti-family, anti-police, and anti-black. As a Christian and a black woman, I cannot support such a devilish organization or promote its slogan.
You may, like many others, say black lives matter without supporting the organization. That’s fair. The problem is that the phrase black lives matter is inextricably tied to the organization Black Lives Matter. They own the slogan—literally and figuratively. There is no divorcing of the two. Even if you reject the Black Lives Matter organization and only use the slogan because you believe in the sanctity of black lives, you will still promote the organization.
It’s like writing a tweet advocating waiting to get married before having children and using a hashtag planned parenthood. Even though you are pro-life, anyone who sees your tweet will associate it with the organization Planned Parenthood. The same goes for black lives matter.
You may also say that BLM is the one borrowing from the Bible because the saying is biblical. A popular Christian said, “Christians are not borrowing this slogan from the world. The world borrowed this truth from the Christian worldview.” I don’t see it this way.
As mentioned earlier, elevating one ethnicity over others isn’t biblical. BLM is not borrowing from the Bible because they don’t believe black lives matter. They don’t care about the victims of black on black violence in inner-cities, nor the thousands of babies murdered in the womb. They only care when the police kill black people—justified or not.
BLM didn’t start the black lives matter movement because of Genesis 1:27, so let them have that phrase. Christians valued the Imago Dei long before Black Lives Matter started, and we don’t need them and their slogan to continue.
I know that [Black Lives Matter] is a phrase that is part of an organization. It is a trademark phrase. And it’s a phrase designed to use black people. That phrase dehumanizes black people, because it makes them pawns in a game that has nothing whatsoever to do with black people and their dignity. And has everything to do with a divisive agenda that is bigger than black people. That’s why I’m not going to use that phrase, because I love black people. I love being black.
Voddie Baucham
What then shall we say? All lives matter? I don’t say that, either. It comprises every living thing under the sun, and roaches and rodents don’t matter to me. If I must protest justice for an image bearer, I will say “human lives matter,” or “eternal souls matter.”
