Twitter changed its profile to honor Black Lives Matter amid George Floyd protests

ecranley@businessinsider.com (Ellen Cranley)
·2 min read
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  • Twitter's official account rolled out nods to the Black Lives Matter movement on its profile as protests over George Floyd's death and police brutality raged across the US.

  • The social media giant changed its signature profile picture to black and added the "#BlackLivesMatter" hashtag to its bio.

  • The change came after the platform faced off with President Donald Trump over it put a warning label on tweets posted by him and the White House threatening to shoot protesters in Minnesota.

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Twitter's official account changed its profile features in a nod to the Black Lives Matter movement as violent protests raged in cities across the country over the death of George Floyd, a black Minnesota man, at the hands of a white Minneapolis cop who kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

The social media giant changed its profile picture and backdrop in addition to adding the official "#BlackLivesMatter" hashtag to its bio.

The main account also retweeted a thread from its diversity and inclusion contingent, @TwitterTogether that detailed different approaches to allyship in the wake of the recent killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and George Floyd.

The hashtag's feature on the account is a significant promotion after it first emerged from the Black Lives Matter movement in 2013 after George Zimmerman was acquitted of shooting 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in 2012.

The online tag later gained momentum in 2014 with the killings of two other black men, Eric Garner and Michael Brown, at the hands of police.

Twitter most recently faced off with President Donald Trump after putting a warning label on his and White House tweets threatening to shoot protesters in Minnesota.

The move enraged Trump, who called for repealing a law that keeps social media companies from being held legally responsible for users' posts.

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