History, Rebellion and Reconciliation: 9 Quotes on Mobilizing for Social Change

Panelists speak on injustice, advocacy and Black lives.

Under the Lens of Activism - In recent years, there has been a surge in the number of race-motivated crimes and injustices, prompting many within the Black community to take a stance on fighting for what is right. During the History, Rebellion and Reconciliation Symposium, hosted by the National Museum of African-American History and Culture, several prominent voices shared their opinions on what's next in the fight for social change. Take a look at several quotes from the event. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

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Under the Lens of Activism - In recent years, there has been a surge in the number of race-motivated crimes and injustices, prompting many within the Black community to take a stance on fighting for what is right. During the History, Rebellion and Reconciliation Symposium, hosted by the National Museum of African-American History and Culture, several prominent voices shared their opinions on what's next in the fight for social change. Take a look at several quotes from the event. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Lonnie Bunch on the importance of educational institutions to help affect change - "There has been a long and tortured history where Black men have been feared and targeted, and at institutions as diverse as slavery, segregation and the penal system, have been used to control, confound and confine.... There have been key moments in our past; moments when tragedies, when injustice, have galvanized the nation and that profound pain has also led to profound change."(Photo: Kris Connor/Getty Images)

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Lonnie Bunch on the importance of educational institutions to help affect change - "There has been a long and tortured history where Black men have been feared and targeted, and at institutions as diverse as slavery, segregation and the penal system, have been used to control, confound and confine.... There have been key moments in our past; moments when tragedies, when injustice, have galvanized the nation and that profound pain has also led to profound change."(Photo: Kris Connor/Getty Images)

Juan Williams on political activism in the Black community - "This is a time of President Obama: a Black president. It's also a time of a Black attorney general. In fact, we just got a new Black attorney general... So, when you talk about political power and let's focus on a place like Ferguson... In Ferguson, at the time of the Michael Brown incident, there weren't elected Black officials, but the ability to become politically active. The idea of expressing political power in terms of that citizenship to speak to the needs of the Black communitiy seems to me to be the part of this moment."(Photo: Manuel Nauta /Landov)

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Juan Williams on political activism in the Black community - "This is a time of President Obama: a Black president. It's also a time of a Black attorney general. In fact, we just got a new Black attorney general... So, when you talk about political power and let's focus on a place like Ferguson... In Ferguson, at the time of the Michael Brown incident, there weren't elected Black officials, but the ability to become politically active. The idea of expressing political power in terms of that citizenship to speak to the needs of the Black communitiy seems to me to be the part of this moment."(Photo: Manuel Nauta /Landov)

Lisa Crooms on how the race of political leaders is not solving the problem - "I'm absolutely thrilled that we have a new attorney general. But the race and gender of the attorney general, the president, it doesn't change the fundamental flaw upon which the country was built. Until we grapple with that flaw and all of the tihngs that sort of eminate from that flaw, you can change the window dressing but the building's still the same."(Photo: Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post/Getty Images)

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Lisa Crooms on how the race of political leaders is not solving the problem - "I'm absolutely thrilled that we have a new attorney general. But the race and gender of the attorney general, the president, it doesn't change the fundamental flaw upon which the country was built. Until we grapple with that flaw and all of the tihngs that sort of eminate from that flaw, you can change the window dressing but the building's still the same."(Photo: Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post/Getty Images)

Opal Tometi on not leaving anyone behind in the Black Lives Matter movement - "I think it's a very specific and important call — Black Lives Matter and Unapologetically Black — particularly because we're saying we're going to be our full selves in this movement. We're going to be our full selves no matter where we are, and we're going to demand that everyone recognizes that. So, our movement and our work is really grounded in radical Black love... We're actually here for all Black lives. We're here for Black queer lives, we're here for Black trans lives, we're here for Black immigrant lives."(Photo: Opal Tometi via Twitter)

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Opal Tometi on not leaving anyone behind in the Black Lives Matter movement - "I think it's a very specific and important call — Black Lives Matter and Unapologetically Black — particularly because we're saying we're going to be our full selves in this movement. We're going to be our full selves no matter where we are, and we're going to demand that everyone recognizes that. So, our movement and our work is really grounded in radical Black love... We're actually here for all Black lives. We're here for Black queer lives, we're here for Black trans lives, we're here for Black immigrant lives."(Photo: Opal Tometi via Twitter)

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Rev. F. Willis Johnson on the beauty and curse of Ferguson - "Ferguson was a place, in its own unique way, diverse, exciting, optimistic, and yet closed from its own realities [and] challenges. A place where as you invest, you share yourself and involve yourself, you can find great benefit and fruitfulness and enjoyment, but also a place that if you are on the margins on the periphary either by choice or by design, you will find yourself to be lost and disenchanted."(Photo: F Willis Johnson via Twitter)

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Rev. F. Willis Johnson on the beauty and curse of Ferguson - "Ferguson was a place, in its own unique way, diverse, exciting, optimistic, and yet closed from its own realities [and] challenges. A place where as you invest, you share yourself and involve yourself, you can find great benefit and fruitfulness and enjoyment, but also a place that if you are on the margins on the periphary either by choice or by design, you will find yourself to be lost and disenchanted."(Photo: F Willis Johnson via Twitter)

Mychal Denzel Smith on how social media has helped the surge of activism and storytelling today - "Social media has been a driving force for a lot of people being able to connect in real time... and plan things from people across the country and across the globe... It's kind of the role that the Black radio stations played during the civil rights movement... What the current media landscape allows for is to change who gets to be the storytellers.(Photo: Mychal Denzel Smith via Instagram)

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Mychal Denzel Smith on how social media has helped the surge of activism and storytelling today - "Social media has been a driving force for a lot of people being able to connect in real time... and plan things from people across the country and across the globe... It's kind of the role that the Black radio stations played during the civil rights movement... What the current media landscape allows for is to change who gets to be the storytellers.(Photo: Mychal Denzel Smith via Instagram)

Photo By Photo: Mychal Denzel Smith via Instagram

Jeff Johnson on what policing should look like - "We keep talking about this narrative of protect and serve. These institutions were never created to protect and serve. Even good officers that join police departments are trained to provide order. If community policing cannot be a program, if the DNA of public service and public safety is not a part of everything that makes a department a department ... and until we change not just the narrative, but the actual DNA of departments, you're going to continue to see this happen."(Photo: Brad Barket/ Getty Images for BET)

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Jeff Johnson on what policing should look like - "We keep talking about this narrative of protect and serve. These institutions were never created to protect and serve. Even good officers that join police departments are trained to provide order. If community policing cannot be a program, if the DNA of public service and public safety is not a part of everything that makes a department a department ... and until we change not just the narrative, but the actual DNA of departments, you're going to continue to see this happen."(Photo: Brad Barket/ Getty Images for BET)

Jasiri X on seeking justice - "We're getting murdered and shot down. Why is the onus on us to be peaceful? You're not talking to these cops who are murderers and telling them to be peaceful. I feel like we have reached a point where I don't believe that we are not justified in defending ourselves. At this point, it is not the question if there's going to be another murder. The only question is what are we going to do when it happens? How far are we willing to go and what are we willing to sacrifice to really get justice for our people."(Photo: Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

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Jasiri X on seeking justice - "We're getting murdered and shot down. Why is the onus on us to be peaceful? You're not talking to these cops who are murderers and telling them to be peaceful. I feel like we have reached a point where I don't believe that we are not justified in defending ourselves. At this point, it is not the question if there's going to be another murder. The only question is what are we going to do when it happens? How far are we willing to go and what are we willing to sacrifice to really get justice for our people."(Photo: Staten Island Advance/Bill Lyons)

Jamilah Lemieux on embracing your Blackness - "We are not going to make the enemy comfortable. The people who are comfortable with us and accept our humanity, they are going to be comfortable with us when we have natural hair and when we're screaming Black lives matter. The people who are not comfortable with us are going to be uncomfortable when you are President and Mrs. Obama, as mannerable and middle class and college trained as you can be. There is still going to be that level of discomfort. Stop trying to make other people comfortable and center your Blackness."(Photo: Kris Connor/Getty Images for EMILY'S List)

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Jamilah Lemieux on embracing your Blackness - "We are not going to make the enemy comfortable. The people who are comfortable with us and accept our humanity, they are going to be comfortable with us when we have natural hair and when we're screaming Black lives matter. The people who are not comfortable with us are going to be uncomfortable when you are President and Mrs. Obama, as mannerable and middle class and college trained as you can be. There is still going to be that level of discomfort. Stop trying to make other people comfortable and center your Blackness."(Photo: Kris Connor/Getty Images for EMILY'S List)