A love letter to Black people or anti-white propaganda? ‘Black (non-Indigenous) people's reflections’ on the role of the #BlackLivesMatter movement in Australia

Abstract

#BlackLivesMatter activism is a contemporaneous manifestation of a centuries-old resistance against anti-Black racism. This paper analyses diverse perceptions about the #BlackLivesMatter movement's purpose, significance and potential utility in the Australian context. Our analysis of the #BlackLivesMatter highlights how the movement harnessed the power of social media to deploy counternarratives to white supremacy on a global scale through sharing stories of anti-Black discrimination and making visible the hidden and subtle conditions, practices and attitudes that embolden racial violence. Focussing on Black non-Indigenous people's understandings of the #BlackLivesMatter movement in Australia, findings reveal that the movement improved racial discourse, raised awareness about the experiences of Black people in Australia and challenged the ‘superdiversity- multicultural- melting pot’ narrative that often obscures the insidious ways in which white supremacy produces and sustains anti-Black, colour-blind everyday racisms. Scepticism about the movement was also raised about the very real risk of the movement being “co-opted” by whiteness in an attempt to capitalise on its popularity.