The Black Lives Matter movement is expressing outrage over a photo recently published in the monthly newspaper distributed by the union representing San Francisco’s police officers.
If you spend a good deal of time on social media, you’ve probably seen the image before. It features two Labradors—one black, one white—wearing dueling signs that read “Black Labs Matter” and “All Labs Matter.” A caption under the image included by the newspaper reads, “Maybe it’s time we all just sit back and tone down the rhetoric…”
The pups are meant to bring levity to an otherwise tense conversation about race and policing. But members of the Black Lives Matter movement feel the photo belittles their cause, calling it an insult to the black community’s fight for social justice.
“It’s so inflammatory, and they still don’t get it,” said Sgt. Yulanda Williams of Officers for Justice, an organization representing African American and other nonwhite officer in San Francisco. “They still choose to inflame situations, and it’s just really insulting.”
The police union has not commented on the picture, which was initially submitted by a union supporter.
Image Credit: Flickr User johnnysilvercloud, https://flic.kr/p/EziEEo via (CC BY SA 2.0)