MSNBC anchor Joy Reid claimed Thursday that there is “absolutely zero” evidence that Black Lives Matter has ever advocated violence.
“There is absolutely zero, none, zero evidence that Black Lives Matter has ever pushed for anything violent, pushed for anything violent to happen to police,” Reid said Thursday night in response to comments made by President Trump during the presidential debate in Nashville, Tennessee.
“Black Lives Matter is about one thing: Stop killing black people just because you pulled them over for parking or moving violation. Just stop killing black people,” she said. “They have never advocated violence against police.”
Is that true?
Reid has apparently been living under a rock for the last five months as anti-police protests have erupted across the country following George Floyd’s death in late May in Minneapolis — a vast majority being connected to the Black Lives Matter movement. While many of those demonstrations remained generally peaceful, it has been well-documented, to say the least, by social media footage and local news reporting, that several have also turned violent.
That said, it is possible that Reid is choosing to ignore the actions of BLM protesters and instead suggesting that BLM leaders have not actually called for such violence to occur.
The problem is, even that claim is on very shaky ground.
During the debate, Trump had made referenceto a 2015 event in St. Paul, Minnesota, in which BLM protesters chanted, “Pigs in a blanket, fry ’em like bacon!” apparently in reference to police officers. A BLM leader who organized the protest later admitted the chant was real but attempted to explain that the whole thing was a misunderstanding.
Reid explained the charge away by alleging the chanters were an “offshoot, separate group of people.” But there are several other instances that would need some explaining away, as well.
In June, Hawk Newsome, chairman of Black Lives Matter of Greater New York, told Fox News’ Martha MacCallum that BLM would “burn down this system” if the country “doesn’t give us what we want.”
“I could be speaking figuratively. I could be speaking literally. It’s a matter of interpretation,” he added.
Then in August, a viral video circulated on social media that showed an unidentified Black Lives Matter leader calling for open violence against the police, saying, “I’m at a point where I’m ready to put these police in the f***ing grave!”
The activist appeared to be standing up in front of a crowd of BLM protesters in Washington, D.C., when he made the shocking remarks.
“I want to take the fight to them and at the end of the day, if they won’t hear us, we burn them the f*** down!” he continued. “I’m one that talk real s***! I talk it in New York and I talk it in D.C. The same way I f*** police up in New York, I f*** cops up in here in D.C. The same way I bust police in the head in New York, I bust police in the head in D.C.!”
Content Warning: rough language
Perhaps a more likely explanation for Reid’s inaccuracy on the issue is that she, not President Trump, has blinders on about the Black Lives Matter movement.
This wouldn’t be surprising since MSNBC has had a difficult time accurately assessing a violent situation before. Take for example, MSNBC reporter Ali Velshi, who said protests in Minneapolis in May were “not, generally speaking, unruly,” as buildings literally burned behind him.
*story by The Blaze