Patrisse Cullors

Patrisse Cullors is an American activist, artist, and author, best known as a co-founder of the international social movement Black Lives Matter. Her work, rooted in Black feminism, abolitionism, and queer theory, has been central to shaping 21st-century civil rights discourse and organizing against police brutality and systemic racism in the United States. Cullors's activism extends beyond the movement into performance art, writing, and political advocacy, establishing her as a significant figure in the ongoing struggle for racial justice.

Early life and education

Patrisse Cullors was born on June 20, 1983, in Los Angeles, California, and grew up in the San Fernando Valley community of Pacoima. Her early life was marked by the impacts of mass incarceration and poverty, as several family members, including her brother, were incarcerated. These experiences with the criminal justice system and witnessing police misconduct in her community fundamentally shaped her political consciousness. Cullors attended the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts before studying religion and philosophy at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). At UCLA, she became involved with the Labor/Community Strategy Center and its Bus Riders Union, an experience that deepened her understanding of intersectionality and grassroots organizing.

Activism and co-founding of Black Lives Matter

Cullors's activism intensified following the 2013 acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. Using the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter on social media, she, along with fellow activists Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi, transformed a phrase into a decentralized global network. Cullors is credited with conceptualizing the movement as a political project and developing its initial online strategy. She served as the executive director of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation and helped organize pivotal early protests, such as the 2014 Ferguson protests following the killing of Michael Brown. Her work emphasized the movement's foundational principles, which include a focus on Black women, LGBT communities, and the disabled, framing the fight against police violence within a broader critique of state violence and white supremacy.

Artistic and cultural work

Cullors integrates her activism with performance and visual art. She is the founder of the performance project Dignity and Power Now, which advocates for incarcerated people and their families, and the co-founder of the Crenshaw Dairy Mart, an Inglewood-based art collective and gallery. Her multidisciplinary work often explores themes of grief, resistance, and healing. In 2018, she co-wrote the New York Times bestseller When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir with asha bandele. The memoir details her personal journey and the founding of the movement. She has also directed and produced documentary theater, including the piece "POWER: From the Mouths of the Occupied," further using art as a tool for social justice education and community building.

Political and advocacy campaigns

Beyond Black Lives Matter, Cullors has led and supported numerous advocacy campaigns. Through Dignity and Power Now, she successfully campaigned for the creation of the first Civilian Oversight Commission for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. She has been a vocal advocate for prison abolition and was a key organizer behind the 2018 "JusticeLA" campaign, which opposed a $3.5 billion plan to build new jails in Los Angeles County. Cullors has also worked on electoral politics, endorsing and campaigning for progressive candidates like Bernie Sanders during the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries. Her advocacy consistently links local issues of policing and incarceration to national and international human rights frameworks.

Public reception and controversies

Cullors has received significant recognition, including being named to the TIME 100 list in 2020 and receiving the Sydney Peace Prize in 2017. However, her leadership has also been the subject of public controversy. In 2021, she faced intense scrutiny over the financial management of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, including questions about real estate purchases and her personal finances. These allegations, often amplified by conservative media outlets, led to internal tensions within the movement and her subsequent resignation from the foundation's board. Critics have also occasionally characterized her anti-Zionist views and statements regarding Israel as divisive. Supporters argue these controversies represent a targeted effort to discredit a prominent Black activist.

Personal life and legacy

Patrisse Cullors is married to Janaya Khan, a co-founder of Black Lives Matter Canada. She identifies as a queer woman and has spoken openly about her experiences with trauma and mental health. Cullors's legacy is intrinsically tied to the rise of Black Lives Matter as a defining civil rights movement of the 21st century. She helped popularize an intersectional, leader-full model of organizing that centers the most marginalized. Her work has been ack, and ater, author of the United States, a co-fu2000

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