Opal Tometi
Opal Tometi is a prominent activist known for her role as the executive director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) and as a cofounder of the Black Lives Matter movement. Born in Phoenix, Arizona, to Nigerian immigrants, Tometi pursued her education at the University of Arizona, where she earned degrees in history and communication studies, focusing on social movement communications. Her activism gained momentum during her involvement with the Black-Brown Coalition of Arizona, particularly against the controversial SB 1070 immigration law.
In 2013, Tometi became involved with Black Lives Matter, responding to Alicia Garza's Facebook post that sparked the movement. She recognized the potential of the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter to unify various issues surrounding Black life and violence, emphasizing its broad scope. Under her leadership, BAJI has become a significant organization advocating for the rights of Black immigrants, engaging in initiatives at both national and international levels.
Tometi has also established Diaspora Rising, aimed at fostering connections within the global Black community, predominantly through social media. Her contributions to activism have earned her numerous accolades, including being named one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in 2020 and receiving the Coretta Scott King Legacy Award in 2019. Tometi's work reflects a commitment to intersectionality and grassroots organizing, highlighting the interconnected struggles of marginalized communities.
Subject Terms
Opal Tometi
- Born: 1984
- Opal Tometi was the executive director of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) in New York City and a cofounder of Black Lives Matter.
Tometi was born in Phoenix, Arizona, to Nigerian immigrants. She stayed in the Phoenix area until college, when she moved to Tucson to attend the University of Arizona. There, she received both her bachelor’s degree in history and master’s degree in communication studies and rhetoric. Her thesis was on social movement communications and advocacy campaigns. Tometi worked prominently in the Black-Brown Coalition of Arizona, a grassroots organizing effort against SB 1070, a 2010 bill known as the “show me your papers” bill because it demanded that police officers ask about the immigration status of all people they stopped.
Tometi became involved in Black Lives Matter in 2013 after Alicia Garza’s “love letter to Black people” on Facebook. Garza wrote the post after the acquittal of George Zimmerman for the murder of Trayvon Martin. Tometi instantly recognized the power of the slogan and its ability to encompass a range of issues and build a wide coalition. She purchased the domain name, created the Facebook page, created the Twitter handle, and continued to use the hashtag (#BlackLivesMatter). She hoped the message could grow into an activist campaign that was about something more than individual Black teens being murdered. “And that’s also why Black Lives Matter is Black Lives Matter, not justice for X. It was very important to have something that was broad enough that captured the state of Black life and the fact that we are experiencing a range of violence, and we need to be able to speak to all of that,” she explained in an interview in The Nation.
Tometi was the head of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), the leading Black organization for immigrant rights, founded in 2006. BAJI has staff and activities in Los Angeles, Phoenix, New York City, Oakland, and Washington, DC. She organized the first congressional briefing on Black immigrants at the Capitol in Washington, DC, and has presented at the United Nations and the UN Global Forum on Migration and Commission on the Status of Women.
As a cofounder of Black Lives Matter, Tometi has continued to emphasize its intersectionality. She is the daughter of immigrants, but also perceived as Black in the United States. She recognizes that the marginalization of immigrants and African Americans in the United States is linked in profound and systemic ways. At the same time, she also understands the limitation of twenty-first century online activism, or slacktivism. Tometi and her cofounders acknowledge that Black Lives Matter cannot be solely online activism. “The three of us are Black organizers. We came in as organizers before creating the Black Lives Matter network and project and we are still organizers, strategists, political thinkers, and philosophers, so we actually have a lot ideas and a lot of really thought out strategies. We want to grow a movement filled with leaders,” she told The Nation in an interview. Black Lives Matter is one of the most innovative civil rights organizations to emerge in the twenty-first century, and it continues to chart unknown territory and break from twentieth century precedents.
Tometi created Diaspora Rising, an organization focused on creating a bond among members of the global, Black community. Diaspora Rising operates mostly on social media.
Tometi has received many awards and honors for her activism. In 2019, she received the Coretta Scott King Legacy Award; in 2020, she was one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People; and in 2021, with Alicia Garza and Patrisse Cullors, Tometi was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
"Black Lives Matter Co-Founder Opal Tometi on the Fight for Racial Justice in the US." Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security, 13 Jan. 2021, giwps.georgetown.edu/seekingpeace/black-lives-matter-co-founder-opal-tometi-on-the-fight-for-racial-justice-in-the-us/. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.
Chotiner, Isaac. "A Black Lives Matter Co-Founder Explains Why This Time Is Different." The New Yorker, 3 June 2020, www.newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/a-black-lives-matter-co-founder-explains-why-this-time-is-different. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.
Kaplan, Erin Aubry. "How Black Lives Matter Changed the US." YES! Magazine, 28 July 2023, www.yesmagazine.org/social-justice/2023/07/28/black-lives-matter-10-years. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.