Voting Station

Alicia Garza

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Advocate

The Resume

    (January 4, 1981- )
    Born in Los Angeles, California
    Black Lives Matter co-founder
    Started the original hashtag with Opal Tometi and Patrisse Cullors, in 2013
    Contributor for MSNBC and Democracy Now!
    Special Projects Director for the National Domestic Workers Alliance
    Spokesperson for Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity
    Director for the Oakland branch for the Forward Together; Organized the Freedom Ride protest in Ferguson, Missouri of the Michael Brown shooting by Darren Wilson, launching BLM chapters throughout the US (2015)
    Writes for The Huffington Post, The Guardian, The Nation, and Rolling Stone

Why she might be annoying:

    She has criticized President Obama on several occasions for what she calls 'neglecting black women' in his policies and speeches.
    She takes credit for coining the 'Black Lives Matter' phrase even though her two co-founders, Patrisse and her sister Opal, did a larger share of the actual organizing.
    She did an Elle interview with Melissa Harris-Perry, repeatedly touching on 'the type of shoes' she wears while protesting.
    She led protestors in an effort to halt the Bay Area Rapid Transit by handcuffing themselves to the train doors; they held it up for nearly an hour before police stepped in (incidentally, she wore sneaker-wedged heels).
    She had a hand in forcing the 'Hands Up Don't Shoot' line on the public (in reference to the Michael Brown shooting, which many argue he 'never actually said'). As such, she was party to much of the civil unrest in Ferguson, as well.
    She all but endorsed socialism when talking about alternatives to the American economic system, saying in an interview with The Nation: 'We are living in political moment where for the first time in a long time we are talking about alternatives to capitalism.'
    It goes without saying that she was never a fan of Donald Trump, calling him 'a terrorist' and 'among the worst Fascists in history' (but she still refused to support Hillary over him in the general, instead choosing to support Jill Stein after Bernie Sanders dropped out).

Why she might not be annoying:

    Her first major initiative was obtaining free public transportation for youths in San Francisco.
    She identifies as bisexual, and her partner is both biracial and transgender.
    Like DeRay McKesson, she has been an intersectional proponent of granting a voice to LGBT members of the BLM movmenent.
    She has pushed back on the narrative that BLM is working to abolish policing as a whole.
    She was recognized on the Root 100 list of African American Achievers (2015).
    She was recognized, along with Opal and Patrisse, on the Politico50 Guide to Thinkers, Doers, and Visionaries (2015).
    She received the Local Hero award from the San Francisco Bay Guardian.
    She was awarded the Jeanne Gauna Communicate Justice Award from the Centre for Media Justice (2015).
    She and her two colleagues were jointly nominated under the heading 'The Women of Black Lives Matter' for The Advocate's Person of the Year, for which they were runners-up (2015).
    She remained ideologically consistent in refusing to support Hillary Clinton, whose policies she was diametrically opposed to (unlike some other Dems we know of).
    She later elaborated on her decision, reasoning: 'The Clintons use black people for votes, but then don't do anything for black communities after they're elected. They use us for photo ops.'
    The post she wrote on Facebook which inspired the famous hashtag was written in reaction to the acquittal of George Zimmerman, and read: 'Black people. I love you. I love us. Our lives matter, Black Lives Matter.'

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 162 Votes: 61.73% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 51 Votes: 49.02% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 12 Votes: 91.67% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 177 Votes: 42.37% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 183 Votes: 62.30% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 1016 Votes: 85.73% Annoying