Freedom of the Press & The Black Lives Matter Protests
Under the first amendment we have 6 freedoms, one being freedom of the press. Freedom of the press amplifies the right to assemble. Ignited by George Floyd's police murder on May 26, the demonstrations of the Black Lives Matter 2020 sparked discussions about systematic racism and police violence in newspaper pages, schools and in homes. They also marked a turbulent moment in the U.S. for freedom of the press, as journalists around the world were faced with relentless assault and detention.
During recent protests in Washington there was video footage of police in riot gear striking news crews as officers were attempting to clear the media and protests from an area near the White House. The video, captured on June 1, was of a scene replicated during Black Lives Matter protests in cities across the United States. There have been countless incidents of journalists being tear gassed, hit with rubber bullets and detained even after proving they were press by showing credentials to law enforcement. The Tracker has collected reports of at least 700 media events at the demonstrations, including more than 100 arrests and at least 114 physical assaults reportedly committed by police. Incident scale is the highest reported by the Tracker since it was established to monitor accidents in the U.S. in 2017.
The assaults on journalists covering the demonstrations of Black Lives Matter in 2020 have proven to be a point of inflection for violence against American media, alarming supporters of press freedom, and raising concerns about potential security for US journalists covering political protests. Journalists' frequent attacks and arrests have also highlighted the need for legal aid and services offered by the Reporters Committee for Press Freedom, whose lawyers have helped journalists covering the protests since demonstrators first hit the streets late May.
“These attacks not only endanger our free press,” Reporters Committee Executive Director Bruce Brown said in a statement during the first weekend of protests, “but also threaten our democracy and the essential role that journalists play in safeguarding constitutional rights.”
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