NPR

Amid 'Devastating' Progress Nationally, Black Lives Matter Engages Local Causes

Activists admit movement around national issues like police reform has been slow, but say they're focused on local issues — from paying subway fare to helping serve dinner to homeless people.
Mike Bento (center) is an organizer with NYC Shut It Down, a group which considers itself part of the Black Lives Matter movement. Escorted by NYPD officers, he leads a march in honor of a black transgender person who was recently killed in New York City.

It's been almost four years since Patrisse Khan-Cullors helped birth the hashtag #blacklivesmatter. Those three words gained national attention for demonstrations against police brutality and grew into a movement.

But progress has been slow, admits Khan-Cullors, a Los Angeles-based activist who co-founded the Black Lives Matter Network.

"The local is where the work is. If we're looking at just the national, it's pretty devastating. But if you zoom into cities, to towns, to rural areas, people are fighting back and people

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