The Black Lives Matter Movement and Other Racial Equality Initiatives in Reno

Reno, Nevada is not particularly well known for its support in the Black Lives Matter movement. However, despite the fact that it hasn’t taken much initiative to become involved in the movement like New York City and Chicago, there have been instances where people have shown their support for racial equality through several means of expression. Fighting for the cause, to them, has become more about moral values and individual beliefs rather than public support.

Reverend Neal Anderson of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Nevada is one individual that has acknowledged importance of support for the black community. His church has been dedicated to welcoming people of all faiths and backgrounds into their congregation.

Unitarian Universality is a religion based on “individual truth”, and the dedication to finding the meaning of life through one’s own personal beliefs. This can include believing in any holy scripture, religious traditions, or god(s). Because of this, many congregations in Unitarian Universality have taken initiative to become involved in social rights, including civil rights and racial equality.

“Our faith is based on the idea that if somebody is oppressed in the world, we need to.work to counter oppressions,” Rev. Anderson said.

In January of 2016, Rev. Anderson and church members placed a sign outside of their church for the first time. The sign featured the words “Black Lives Matter” in large font, with a heart off to the side. The following morning after the sign went up, Rev. Anderson returned to the church to discover that it had been vandalized, with the word “white” spray-painted over “black”.

The first vandalized sign Rev. Anderson had put outside of his church, with the word “White” spray painted over “Black.”

Despite the racially-motivated crime, the church wasn’t deterred from supporting the movement. Rev. Anderson wanted their message to be clear- their support for the Black Lives Matter movement couldn’t be oppressed; their voices couldn’t be silenced. Shortly after discovering the ruined sign, the reverend replaced it with a new one.

Shortly after this, the second sign was stolen yet again. The church replaced the sign once more. When it was stolen the third time, they replaced it yet again…and again…and again.

“After about the eight or ninth sign was replaced, we put another sign up with a camera,” Anderson said, “and that was also stolen. So then we decided, ‘Ok, rather than put up a banner that can be cut with a box cutter and stolen, we would put up a plywood sign’.”

And that’s exactly what they did. The church built a stand and created a “Black Lives Matter” sign out of wood. The whole thing appeared stable enough to give any thieves a hard time if they tried to steal it one more time.

However, a week later, two young men captured by the camera footage (yet deemed unidentifiable by police) sawed the wooden sign down and stole the camera from its hidden place in a tree.

“There was this sense of, ‘Oh well, let’s put up a bigger and better sign’,” Rev. Anderson said. “They can cut down wood, but what if we put up a street sign that had metal posts? But then you think, well, is that the point? To escalate this?”

As of today, the church has placed a small but sturdy sign up for the Black Lives Matter movement, and held a conference on May 2 concerning the issue.

This nation’s history knows the struggle of civil rights and liberties- the U.S. Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s is one of the largest known revolutions in the world. In times of resistance, keeping one’s faith can become extremely difficult, but not impossible. In 1965, resistance towards the Civil Rights Movement nearly stopped, but couldn’t prevent, the march from Selma to Montgomery led by Martin Luther King Jr. The murders of numerous Black Panthers in 1967 couldn’t deter the rest of the organization from raising their fists proudly in the air during protests. Today, campaigning for racial equality can not only be expressed through protests and marches, but also through everyday support and work with the community.

Jody Lykes, professor and staff member at the University of Nevada, Reno, is just one proponent of this idea. Lykes strongly believes strongly in the initiation of black culture into Reno’s social atmosphere.

“I have a lot of very positive views on what it means to be black, and those are what get me through any injustice,” he said. “If we took action to build our community first, then I think we would get more ground than a lot of other places do.”

Jody Lykes’ office, decorated with posters and books about social and racial equality.

His office, located in The Joe Crowley Building on campus, is decorated with paraphernalia of pro-black, Mexican, and Native American movements. Black Panther posters, books on the Chicano revolution, and photos of Native American militias filled every available space. He describes himself as a person who is fully in support of the Black Lives Matter movement, but he had a different take on how to help the movement progress.

“Instead of putting my energy towards a protest or organization, I would much rather have our students graduate, walk across the stage to get their degree, and have some skill to get a paycheck,” Lykes said. “I don’t, at this point, believe that events are the be-all end-all.”

As a person who was once present at an abundance of pro-black events and protests, Lykes claims that the black community in Reno must work to become more unified and strong. He believes this can help fight against issues in the city that are motivated by racism.

Lykes has been present at panels and conferences concerning police action within the black community in Reno, which has triggered his passion for pro-black empowerment. At the University of Nevada, he not only coordinates events for the school’s culture cooperative, but he also teaches a course on Gender, Race and Identity. His focuses on Pan-Africanism and Diaspora have led him to feel very strongly about black ancestry and history.

A poster on the wall in his office outlines the Transatlantic Slave Trade from the 16th to 19th century.

“Those arrows,” he said, pointing to the poster, “are showing the wealth that we [Africans] build for all those countries, while our continent got robbed! And continues to be robbed…somehow we got left out of the story. How? How, how…”

Jody Lykes, however, isn’t the only one baffled at the injustices faced by the black community and it’s history.

Zaire Davis, a student at the University of Nevada and member of the Black Student Organization, spoke on the issue with a hint of anger behind her voice.

“It’s unfair,” she said, “that when there was a march on campus for black students, we got called ‘niggers’ on social media by people that couldn’t even say it to our faces. I’m mad, it makes me mad.”

Davis defines Reno as a “mostly white” town, but claims that the spirit of the black students in the city is strong. As a member of the Black Student Organization, she and other black students at the university work to incorporate black culture into the school’s livelihood.

“I think that people just need to open their eyes a little more,” Davis said. “There’s been a lot of progress in eliminating racism, but we still have such a long way to go. Not only in Reno, but in America in general, and around the world.”

Davis, like Jody Lykes, believes that focusing on the black community and unity amongst the black population is incredibly important. As a member of another black culture club, Sisters on the Move (SOAM), she enjoys participating in volunteer work and community service to give back to the town.

“Being black is a huge part of my identity. And when black people get together, there’s so much that we can get done. Not only to strive for equality but to help everyone progress with us,” she said.

In the end, the black community and its supporters within Reno have continued to show their strength. The presence of the black population in the biggest little city is anything but weak, as small as it may be. And as proven by people like Reverend Anderson, Jody Lykes, and Zaire Davis, anyone can do their part to help racial equality progress.