#BlackLivesMatter founder Patrisse Cullors visits Rutgers

Patrisse Cullors, one of the three founders of the "#BlackLivesMatter" hashtag, visited Rutgers in April, where she said she saw a shift in power from the state to the people with the growing presence of social media.

The creation of "#BlackLivesMatter" aligned with efforts to change the national and international dialogue surrounding racism, she said.

Social media is a powerful tool because it provides people, particularly black people, with a solid platform to change the narrative of various news reports regarding the arrests or deaths of minorities, Cullors said.

Citing the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teen who was shot and killed by police in Ferguson, Missouri last August, Cullors said social media allowed civilians greater agency to alter Brown's image in the media.

In the case of South Carolina's Walter Scott, whose body was shot and accessorized with false evidence by a white officer, Cullors said the role of a cellphone camera became vital.

Martese Johnson, a University of Virginia junior, sustained head injures that were captured via cellphone by a crowd of nearby students while police officers were arresting him in March, according to The Washington Post.

“(The video recorders) become empowered to tell the story about the people who are disempowered,” Cullors said.