The 2020 Olof Palme Prize is awarded to the international civil rights movement Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation which has its roots in the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement founded by Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi.

The Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation works for peaceful civil disobedience to police brutality and racist violence worldwide. 

The BLM movement in the broadest sense has uniquely highlighted the vulnerability, pain and anger of the African-American minority for not being valued on an equal footing with people of a different skin color.

Black Lives Matter had a major national and international impact in the summer of 2020 in connection with a series of cases of extreme brutality. 

In the United States alone, an estimated 20 million people have taken part in Black Lives Matter protests, and millions more around the world have made their voices heard. It illustrates that racism and racist violence are not only a problem for American society but also globally, including in Sweden.

The resonance that African-American protests have received internationally shows that when people are exposed to violence and discrimination because of their skin color, it is about global threats to human dignity and fundamental human rights. 

The Olof Palme Memorial Fund