There is a lot of unrest going on in our country. From the divisiveness, the last presidential election caused, to those peacefully taking a knee. It seems that our country will not rest until we can figure out how to come together.
We will never come together if we do not talk about the issues at hand. I see and hear so many times, "I would rather not talk about it." Or "I'm tired of politics." Or "I don't want to get involved it doesn't affect me."
All of those statements are why we still have a problem.
How many times have we been told that bottling up our problems or ignoring them only makes them worse? Hello, Charlottesville. That seems a whole lot worse to me.
If we continue to ignore the racism, if we continue to ignore the bigotry, if we continue to ignore that our president called another world leader rocketman in an official address, we are the problem.
Turning a blind eye while bad things happen doesn't make you any better than those causing the harm. Yes, I know it can be messy, and people can get offended or hurt.
However, we need to put aside our own discomfort for the greater good of this country, of our friends and families and of those whom no one will listen.
If the tables were turned and you were in a place that felt unsafe or uncared for, would you feel like you were in a country of support and community if people didn't want to talk about what was happening to you? Or they ignored you as you asked for help or even support?
This is about more than you feeling uncomfortable or having some difficult conversations, it's about the whole country realizing that we are no longer a great place, a leading nation and fixing that. Growing to become a hub of acceptance, diversity and creativity.
This is about America cleaning the dirt from the crevices and becoming a shining example to everyone else that we can and we will take care of our people like we always promise.
It's us putting our money where our mouth is.
Until people feel comfortable walking down the street, and we finally feel safe in the hands of a leader who treats his job with dignity and respect, we need to have these difficult conversations. Ignoring the problems means you are part of the problems, so, try instead to be part of the solutions.
