I have remained silent because I believed it was not my place to speak up, but if everyone had that same mind set, the world would never change.
I am outraged at all of the violence I have seen in this country and it is time that people started talking about the issues that face the black community. These conversations should be sparked by everyone not just people of color. These issues effect our entire nation.
Gandhi once said,“Be the change you wish to see in the world” and it is time that everyone starts embodying this change. It is time that our country works through these racial issues and changes the mindset of our entire nation.
Recently multiple people of color have lost their lives due to excessive force used by police. That is murder. (Before you scream there are more black on black crimes than police brutality cases, remember criminals did not take an oath to protect the citizens of this nation.) Our justice system allows everyone the right to a fair trial and the notion that everyone is innocent until proven guilty, but that is not always the case. These officers had decided that these men and women were guilty before they ever reached a trial, just because of the color of their skin. These officers have taken the justice system into their own hands and should be reprimanded and charged with murder.
These officers should be punished for their actions and put in jail.
Will that actually happen? I am doubtful, but that does not mean we should react with more violence and kill more innocent people.
Just like one man of color does not speak for his entire race, one officer does not represent every officer in the country.
Is there wide spread racism within not only the police but the country?
Yes, and that does need to change but violence is not the answer.
The Dallas Police Department and the Black Lives Matter protesters were working together to march peacefully, when a sniper decided that he wanted to murder innocent people. This sniper decided to take the law into his own hands because he believed what he was doing was just and right, just like many officers involved in these police brutality cases believe they are doing. It is time that everyone realized that the answers to these problems cannot be solved with more violence, because it will only fuel the fire.
What the Black Lives Matters Protesters and Dallas Police Department were doing, coming together for a peaceful gathering to show that these racial prejudices need to end, is a step in the right direction. We need to end the racism and prejudices that breed in this country.
It is everyone’s job to take a stand and speak up.