Our movement started at the grassroots level, was built up at the grassroots level, and will continue to be tied fundamentally to the power that lies in grassroots organizing. Our movement began as #BlackLivesMatter on social media. Our growth over the past seven years has been fueled by love: a love for Black life, Black joy, and a vision for a world in which we collectively love on Black communities. A movement driven by love will never falter; it can only grow, as ours has. Though our movement in its entirety continues to be driven by a deep sense of purpose and commitment, BLM Grassroots will remain fundamentally connected to our work on the frontlines — where it all started. As official chapters connected to BLMGNF, we envisioned a set of guiding principles and processes to ensure our relationship to the Foundation and the movement remain true to our core values. While we stay true to our guiding principles, we are also growing into a new iteration of our collective movement. Growing into a movement that can reach millions globally—rather than primarily domestically—has not been easy. While we have always acted with a lens of liberation for all Black people, our timeline for expansion has quickened over the past year. But we remain committed to showing up for Black folks at the most intimate levels, because we are the ones who keep us safe. As BLM Grassroots, we can do that. We are patient. We are excited. We are moved by love. In this section, you will find our 2020 year in review. We’ve provided our chapters’ accomplishments in 2020 across the areas of: political activation, community engagement, and chapter development. Today, we have gathered five chapter reports. In future years—as we continue to integrate more chapters into our official network—you will be reading from dozens more. ~BLM GrassRoots