“We’re Here and We Will Be Here”: Black Collective Movement Activists Have Become Leading Organizers in Tampa’s Fight for Racial Justice

Originally published in Creative Loafing online and print editions.

Across Tampa, dozens of Black Lives Matter demonstrations have been organized by activists in the wake of the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor—two Black Americans murdered by law enforcement officers in May and March, respectively.

In addition to more established racial justice groups in the area, such as Tampa Dream Defenders and the local Black Lives Matter chapter, several activist groups have formed in light of the renewed ire, determination, and passion driving recent protests—demonstrating an ardent fervor comparable to that which drove the mid-20th century U.S. civil rights movement.

One such activist group on the rise in Tampa is the Black Collective Movement TPA (BCM), a group of young and tenacious organizers who oppose systemic oppression in all its forms, including that on the basis of race, class, sexual orientation, ability, and gender identity.

Read the full piece here.