Support for police officers nationwide is on full display as hundreds of “Blue Lives Matter” billboards are popping up across America.
The move has left some Black Lives Matter activists like Tami Sawyer furious.
“Blue Lives Matter billboards don’t honor fallen officers, they discredit black humanity, “Sawyer said via Twitter.
According to Vocativ:
““Blue Lives Matter” is freckling deep-blue billboards nationwide, drawing backlash from critics bashing them as racist and distasteful. But it appears that those behind the signs don’t understand why the public campaign, which follows the rise of the “Black Lives Matter” movement, is igniting fury.
The Louisiana-based Lamar Advertising Company has unleashed more than 300 of the signs that bear “Blue Lives Matter,” in all caps, at the center. A badge with the words “police officer” lies to the left.
Trace Hallowell, managing partner at Tactical Magic, the branding company that created the billboards, has said he was “dismayed to hear” that anyone would think the ads were offensive to African Americans, according to blogger Davy V., who says he spoke with Hallowell.
“The heart of the message is that no human should be hated or targeted for violence simply because of the color of clothing that they wear,” said Hartwell, who did not immediately respond to Vocativ’s request for comment. “I would hope this message is simply seen as being in harmony with that philosophy.”