If you were gay and wanted to come out, do you think it is easier now or 30 years ago? Clearly it is now due to generationally eroding of the prejudice views and campaigning against them so they become far less acceptable. That does not mean there aren’t still loads of homophobic people about but kids genuinely appear to not bat an eyelid now whereas my generation very much used it as a term of abuse. That is how things change not reading slogans and having the scales fall from your eyes instantaneously. However the protest movements, lobbying and highlighting are effective in eroding some prejudices that may have deemed acceptable and now far less so - do think US has huge issues and far less so in UK. But I am white and doing ok so woudl not necessarily be aware of what blacks experience in day to day life which is far more subtle than meeting EDL Neanderthals.
I am no fan of taking the knee mind as do think tokenism now but naive to think such things work instantly and get to root cause and if not are ineffective.