#BlackBrunchNYC Captures Racial Divide in Police Protests
Kelsey Bolar /
Americans protesting fatal police encounters with black men took to a new location yesterday to shine light on the issue: New York City brunch spots.
Using the hashtags #BlackBrunchNYC and #BlackLivesMatter, protesters targeted midtown restaurants, which they called “white spaces.”
We interrupt your brunch time to let you know there is a war on Black lives. We will not stay silent. #BlackBrunchNYC pic.twitter.com/LeDDQeEKGB
— Sharmin Hossain (@sharminultra) January 4, 2015
Reaction to the unconventional demonstration locations was divided.
Some Twitter users rallied around the cause, mobilizing others to participate in the peaceful protests.
Which side are you on NYC? #blackbrunchnyc is demanding you stand up for Black lives. We outchea interrupting your Sunday brunch. A video posted by Sharmin Hossain (@sharminultra) on
ATTN WHITE Man, I have no guilt disturbing your brunch. Its YOU that has no right to be here. #blackbrunchnyc pic.twitter.com/mFRq5Q9hbe
— aru (@QuePasaApaza) January 4, 2015
@drmcclain black folks are leading creative, nonviolent direct action that's spreading across the country. #BlackBrunch #blackbrunchnyc
— KAYHL (@misterkeelay) January 4, 2015
Others mocked the idea that interrupting a Sunday brunch would make a significant difference.
https://twitter.com/j_arthur_bloom/status/551827206880907264
The demonstrations promoted the idea that brunching is a “white” activity and followed the narrative of “white privilege” — the idea that whites, especially white men, continue to have an advantage over other races and ethnicities.
https://twitter.com/dasracist/status/551793808070176768
Inside targeted restaurants, about 30 protesters sang and read the names of blacks killed by police, including Michael Brown, 18, in Ferguson, Mo., and Eric Garner, 43, in New York.
@blackbrunchnyc first stop Maialino. ??? #blackbrunchNYC #BLACKLIVESMATTER #blackandbreathing A video posted by Dyani Douze (@dyanidouze) on
Some Twitter users were quick to point out that many of the Sunday brunchers probably were liberals who support the #BlackLivesMatter cause.
https://twitter.com/NYC_Infidel/status/551842714996592640
Liberals protesting liberals. Not really sure what #blackbrunchnyc is trying to accomplish.
— Matt Dawson (@SaintRPh) January 4, 2015
Others mocked the idea behind #BlackBrunchNYC, using sarcasm to poke fun at the demonstrators.
https://twitter.com/UrbanAchievr/status/551839332349513728
https://twitter.com/JeremyLHeath/status/552168838528520192
Too far “@Gothamist: Sunday Brunchers Targeted By Police Brutality Protesters #blackbrunchnyc http://t.co/hQD9S44Pzv pic.twitter.com/lwnDxsAroa”
— Rico227 (@Rico227) January 5, 2015
I tired this #blackbrunchnyc thing today, so I walk over to my employees and sat down on their laps, as they tried to enjoy their lunch.
— SHANIE BOY™ (@Shane_Rodenbeck) January 5, 2015
#BlackBrunchNYC This reminds me of the time Rosa Parks sent back her Mimosa.
— Jon Gabriel (@exjon) January 4, 2015
On a serious note, some social media users were upset over the timing of the protests coinciding with the funeral of Wenjian Lui, one of two NYPD officers shot dead in an ambush Dec. 20.
So while #OfficerLiu is being laid to rest, idiots are staging #blackbrunchnyc Anyone else see how horrifically disrespectful this is?
— It’s Just Jenn (@JennJacques) January 4, 2015
Others were upset with another demonstration across the country, where protesters disrupted an award ceremony for a 100-year-old World War II veteran in Portland, Ore., by shouting — in a reference to Garner’s death — “I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe.”
https://twitter.com/Croatansound/status/552171837757849600