Local BLM leader seeks to promote a better understanding
EL CENTRO – Hilton Smith and a small group of Black Lives Matters supporters met outside the Imperial County Superior Courthouse Saturday afternoon to present a check for $1,000 to San Diego-based Generation Justice.
Generation Justice in a non-profit advocacy organization describes itself as youth and student activists organizing for social justice.
“Generation Justice trains youth leaders and equips them with tools necessary to fight against systemic racism, inequality and injustices within our communities holding people in positions of power accountable through many outlets and avenues,” according to a 2018 GoFundMe campaign on the organization’s behalf.
For Smith, letting the
public know about the check presentation wasn’t about the money, it’s about altering perception of what Black Lives Matter is about and the work it does in the local community.
Certainly, the movement is intended to stir things up and make people think. After all, BLM, nationally, was born in the aftermath of George Zimmerman’s acquittal in the 2012 fatal shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla. It gained wider prominence after the officer-involved shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., in 2014. And this year, of course, demonstrations and riots appeared in communities throughout the nation following the death of George Floyd on May 25 while he was in the custody of three Minneapolis, Minn., police officers.
In some cities, the pro
tests devolved into looting, vandalism, rioting and violence. That didn’t happen here when Smith helped organize a community rally at the courthouse demanding justice for Floyd on June 1. Participants included the chiefs of both the El Centro and Calexico police departments. There were no reports of vandalism or violence during the event.
Smith said a false narrative is being perpetuated about Black Lives Matter. “People view us as only doing protests,” he said. “We do a lot more than that.”
He said BLM in El Centro, which was granted status as a local 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, not only is intended to generate awareness and social justice, but also to serve the community. Smith said one area of focus is reaching out to local youth, encouraging them to become
involved in the community as well as to pursue their education and achieve financial literacy.
Smith, as BLM’s local CEO, has also worked with Spread the Love Charity in serving meals to the homeless and collecting food for families displaced in this past summer’s massive fire in Niland that destroyed some 40 homes.What his organization is not, Smith said, is anti-police. In fact, Smith, a Valley native, is a retired peace officer himself, having worked many years for the Imperial County Sheriff’s Office.
Negative portrayals of BLM are counterproductive to the community’s growth, he said.
“We’re about justice and equality,” he said. “Nobody can say anything negative about Black Lives Matter in Imperial County.”