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Blue Lives Matter
Countermovement in the United States / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Blue Lives Matter (also known as Police Lives Matter) is a countermovement in the United States that aims to show solidarity with the police. It emerged in 2014 in direct opposition to the Black Lives Matter movement[1] and gained traction following the high-profile homicides of NYPD officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu in Brooklyn, New York.[2][3][4][5] Supporters of Blue Lives Matter have called for crimes committed against police officers to be classified as hate crimes.[6]
![]() Thin blue line flag, commonly associated with the Blue Lives Matter movement | |
Formation | 2014; 10 years ago (2014)New York City, U.S. |
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Founders | Active and retired law enforcement officers |
Type | Social movement |
Location |
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Critics[who?] have said that while being Black is an inherent characteristic, being a police officer is a choice, and that police officers are already respected in most communities. They add that attacking or killing a police officer already carries a higher penalty than attacking a non-police officer in most states.[6]