Congratulations are in order for Democrat Stacey Abrams and those part of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) social movement: both have been nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize.
Stacey Abrams And Voting Rights
Norwegian parliament member Lars Haltbrekken nominated Abrams. He likened her work to one of the nation’s most outspoken advocates for voting rights reform.
“Abrams’ work follows in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s footsteps in the fight for equality before the law and for civil rights,” Haltbrekken said in a statement to Reuters.
In 2018, Abrams lost Georgia’s gubernatorial election to Republican Secretary of State Brian Kemp.
“This is not a speech of concession,” she said at the time. “Concession means to acknowledge an action is right, true or proper.”
Soon after her loss, Abrams founded Fair Fight to promote fair elections in Georgia and throughout the country. Many credit the organization’s “Get The Vote Out” campaign with enabling President Biden’s win in Georgia during the election. The win marked the first time that a Democratic presidential elect won the state since 1992.
BLM And Its Fight To Combat Systemic Racism
Similarly, Norwegian MP Petter Eide nominated BLM for its work to fight racial inequality.
“BLM’s calls for systemic change have spread around the world,” he said. “[It has forced] other countries to grapple with racism within their own societies.”
In 2013, activists founded the Black Lives Matter Global Network in response to the murder of Trayvon Martin. Then, what started as a hashtag transformed into a global social movement. In 2020, protests in over 40 countries took place in solidarity with the Black community.
About The Nobel Peace Prize
People can expect the list of nominations for the Prize to grow throughout the year as nominators continue to announce their decisions. Other notable nominees include environmental activist Greta Thunberg and Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg. The Nobel Peace Prize Committee will announce its official selection sometime in October.
