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On May 26, 2022, it will have been two years since the civil unrest began after footage showing the murder of George Floyd hit the interwebs. The controversy over former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin brought about a resurgence of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, and by extension, the global BLM organization. But now, almost 730 days later, where did all the group’s protests, riots, and media appearances leave the black community? Are black Americans better off after the organization’s reappearance on the national stage?

There are a variety of questions one could ask to determine how BLM has impacted the black community over the past two years. For starters, how has the group affected policing in predominantly African American communities? The Manhattan Institute’s Jason Riley suggested in an interview with Fox News Digital that the riots and constant demonization of law enforcement has altered police behavior in a way that is detrimental to black lives.

“I would argue that, on balance, these communities are worse off because by overemphasizing the role of police, they’ve changed police behavior for the worse,” he said. “In other words, police do become more cautious. They’re less likely to get out of their cars and engage with people in the community. And to the extent that police are less proactive, the criminals have the run of the place.”

What Riley is referring to is the “Ferguson Effect,” which is the tendency of officers to pull back from policing out of fear they will face undue scrutiny if they do their jobs. The phenomenon got its moniker when it was noticed after the riots which occurred when Michael Brown was fatally shot by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.

In a piece for City-Journal, author Heather MacDonald noted that officers “backed off proactive policing in minority neighborhoods, having been told that such discretionary enforcement was racially oppressive.” The effects were devastating. “By early 2015, the resulting spike in shootings and homicides had become patent and would lead to an additional 2,000 black homicide victims in 2015 and 2016, compared with 2014 numbers,” MacDonald wrote.

But this is not the extent to which BLM has impacted policing in a way that has had a pernicious impact on the black community. The organization’s activists were on the forefront of the “Defund the Police” movement, which successfully pressured major cities all across the country to slash their law enforcement budgets, which in turn led to a significant decrease in officers patrolling neighborhoods. The result was a nationwide uptick in violent crime, which has taken a disproportionate number of black lives. Indeed, the ongoing crime wave is hurting black Americans more than anything else. Perhaps this is the systemic racism conversation the nation needs to be having.

Another important question: How has Black Lives Matter impacted the economy in African American communities? The answer is rather dismal. The riots caused an immense amount of damage to cities with high black populations. The worst violence happened in Minneapolis. The Star-Tribune reported:

“More than 1,500 businesses were damaged along Lake Street and in other business districts in Minneapolis and St. Paul in the riots. With more than $500 million in damage, it is the second-costliest civil disturbance in U.S. history, trailing only the 1992 riots in Los Angeles.”

A year later, only 21% of the properties that received the worst damage were back in business. It was estimated at that time that it would take five to 10 years to rebuild after the unrest. “City officials and fundraising groups have calculated the total cost at around $500 million to be shared by 1,500 businesses,” according to MPR News. “But fundraisers have only secured a fraction of what they say they need.”

(Photo by Rudy Malmquist/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Minneapolis is not the only city that was wracked by riots. Violent demonstrations also erupted in Kenosha, Wisconsin after the police shooting of Jacob Blake. While much of the city had recovered from the damage by late last year, the Uptown section remained devastated. This area was where many black and Latino families lived. “Much of the main commercial corridor is still boarded up or crumbling, the brick walls of empty businesses streaked with soot. Inside the shells of buildings that burned, debris is slowly rotting, the smell of mold wafting onto the sidewalk,” according to The New York Times.

Nationally, the riots in response to police brutality caused a total of $2 billion in destruction. Many businesses – most of which were black-owned – sustained heavy damage. A significant number were forced to shut down. But the violence caused even more harm that will have a long-lasting impact on these communities. Author Brad Polombo, in a piece for FEE, explained:

“We must also remember that riots leave a lasting shadow on a city that haunts its economy for decades. The afflicted areas face higher insurance rates, lower property values, higher prices, reduced tax revenue, and decreased economic opportunity.”

To be fair, not all of the rioting involved actual members of the Black Lives Matter organization. In many cases, outside agitators, including mostly white members of Antifa groups, made significant contributions to the mayhem. But it cannot be denied that the group played a critical role in fomenting the unrest. Additionally, BLM, along with progressive activists, was instrumental in using Floyd’s murder to inflame racial tensions even though most of the country agreed that the incident that claimed his life was an injustice.

(Photo by Katie McTiernan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Darvio Morrow, CEO of the FCB Network and producer of documentary “BLM Aftermath: Cleveland”, which details the destruction BLM caused in that Ohio city, explained how the organization has not benefited black lives. “I think it’s done more harm than good. After the George Floyd murder most of the country was united in horror and in wanting change,” he said. “Black Lives Matter the organization hijacked Black Lives Matter the movement and poisoned the well. Now we’re even further apart than we were before the murder. A lot of the blame for that lays at the feet of the organization.”

The Black Lives Matter Global Foundation has come under scrutiny over the past year after reports revealed that it has not accounted for the tens of millions of dollars in donations it has received. Meanwhile, the group purchased a $6 million home in California and another luxury residence in Canada. An honest look at the organization reveals its only real accomplishment: Pulling off an elaborate grift that has nothing to do with improving black lives. Unfortunately, BLM became more of a victimizer than a benefactor of the black community.