As the Black Lives Matter movement becomes an influential political force in the wake of George Floyd’s death, some are now wondering if its followers — frustrated…
As the Black Lives Matter movement becomes an influential political force in the wake of George Floyd’s death, some are now wondering if its followers — frustrated by a two-party system that refuses to heed its calls — could ultimately organize their own political party in the United States.
Four years ago, 43 percent of American adults supported Black Lives Matter, according to the Pew Research Center. Today, two-thirds of U. S. adults say they support the movement and 38 percent say they strongly support it.
While Democrats have sought to incorporate the movement into its party, some activists have been reluctant to do so: Presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, for example, recently ignited outrage by telling radio host Charlamagne tha God “you ain’t black” if you’re figuring out whether to vote for him or President Trump. His comments renewed cries from African-Americans that the Democratic Party take their vote for granted.
“That someone could be so presumptuousness, that you have to vote for a Democrat or otherwise you’re not identified as Black, that is the principal reason why we need a Black party, independent, to change that kind of behavior,” Robert Johnson, the founder of BET, said in a recent interview.
So, could Black Lives Matter mobilize into its own political party?
Johnson, the first black billionaire in the U. S., said in an interview with Fox News that he sees the need for a group to stand up with the sole purpose of fighting for African-Americans because he said the Democratic Party hasn’t delivered on mending the systemic wealth gap between white and black Americans.
“No minority group has ever achieved significant power in a two-party system when they are locked into one party and considered unreachable by the other party,” Johnson said.
