Black Lives Matter
noun
Note: Black Lives Matter was founded by Black community organizers Patrisse Khan-Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi after George Zimmerman was acquitted of charges relating to his fatal shooting of Black teenager Trayvon Martin in 2012; the movement expanded as people reacted to police killings of unarmed Black people in years following. The name Black Lives Matter functions as a declaration that Black people's lives have as much value as white people's lives, and as a call to end systems and practices that challenge this fact.
—abbreviation BLMExamples of Black Lives Matter in a Sentence
Andrew R. Chow, Time, 14 Oct. 2025
Sharon Chuter's history of activism In June 2020, amid the nationwide Black Lives Matter protests, Chuter started the hashtag, #PullUpOrShutUp.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 13 Oct. 2025
That year marked the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, while incidents of police brutality sparked social justice and equality protests across the U.S., bringing the height of the Black Lives Matter movement to the forefront.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 10 Oct. 2025
The Clara Mohammed School teaches about subjects like Black Lives Matter and current events.
—Everett Eaton, jsonline.com, 7 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Black Lives Matter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Black%20Lives%20Matter. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
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