A reflection on the Nobel Peace Prize nomination presented to the global movement for racial justice
As one ecosystem made up of many groups that form the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), we acknowledge the news of the Nobel Peace Prize nomination presented to the global movement for racial justice.
As M4BL, we value this recognition inasmuch as it represents the vastness of a movement; every family and community yearning for justice; every organizer, activist, and leader on the frontlines today and in movement’s past; and every life lost to the scourge of white supremacy and state terror.
We are all counted in the number, proceeding onward and unapologetically toward Black liberation.
We do not advocate for peace without accountability and transformation. Our leaders have been given awards before and named heroes in global headlines, only to later be assassinated and have their legacies whitewashed. Even now, our movements and protests are criminalized.
Recognition must be met with meaningful action and rebirth — because, without accountability and transformation, peace is hollow, like the bullets that ricochet off Black bodies at the hands of the police; empty, like the savings accounts and trust funds of Black kids whose generational wealth was robbed from them; and barren, like the promises of reconciliation and reparations made to Black people around the world, only to be abandoned.
We value this recognition, and our demands to protect all Black lives must still be met.
Whatever the outcome of this award process, we know that we have already won. Brick by brick and through the generations, we have erected a global movement connected by our desire for Black liberation and freedom; a movement in service of all Black lives; a movement working toward models whereby those who are most impacted are a part of leading, identifying solutions, setting priorities, creating policy agendas, and shifting narratives.
And so, a celebration is in order. We celebrate our vast, leaderfull, inclusive global movement built by Black people for Black people.
Onward, in celebration and defense of Black lives.
Text DEFEND to 90975 to join us.
