We have bred a culture of hate. We have bred a culture of violence, a nation of bigotry, and a race of destruction.
I've said it once, and I'll say it again: enough is enough.
Black lives matter. They absolutely do. They matter just as much as any white life, any Muslim life, any Asian life, any LGBT life. They don't matter more than another life; rather, they matter just as much as any other life.
Blue lives matter. They absolutely do. They matter just as much as any white life, any Muslim life, and Asian life, any LGBT life. They don't matter more than another life, they matter just as much as any other life.
The point is, a life is a life. And it's precious, and fragile, and short. Life is so short. So why do we take other's lives away? Why do we spend our short lives disrespecting and hating one another? Why do we insist that some people are inferior based on a skin color or a sexual orientation, and why do we insist that some are superior? Because when it comes down to it, every single one of us are flesh, and blood, and bones, and cells, and DNA. We are all one.
And because we are all one, as long as I live, I will never, ever wrap my head around this kind of hatred and bigotry. Violence does not and cannot solve a problem.
There are bad people everywhere, and the world will never have a shortage of bad people. These bad people will harm others. That's a reality we all have to face every single day. But these bad people can't represent the majority. If a police officer acts out of turn, shooting a black man with no justifiable intent to shoot, it doesn't mean that every single police officer is out to kill a black person. If a black person shoots a police officer with no justifiable intent, it doesn't mean that every single black person is out to kill a police officer.
Yes, there are bad people everywhere. But there are many, many more good people: the majority of police officers who will lay down their lives to protect a black person just as readily as a white person; the majority of black Americans who respect a police officer's life; the majority of whites who respect blacks; the majority of blacks who respect whites; the majority of people who accept the differences of everyone.
We're at a controversial time in history, a time when both our police officers and our black brothers and sisters are under attack. No one, no matter their race, gender, sexual orientation, or occupation should feel afraid to walk down the street, or avoid going out in public because they think they will be attacked. No one should be subject to senseless violence. No one.
We need to learn to love each other again. Respect each other. Build each other up, not tear each other down. Because when the world is filled with more love than hate, when we help our neighbor or a stranger in need, when we respect someone who may be different than us when we hug our loved ones instead of fight with them, the world becomes a better place.
It's time to unite to end these destructive stereotypes. It's time to stand up and come together to end this culture of violence and bigotry. It's time to stop hating.
