People forget how much power they have in their voice. This can, unfortunately, be seen in the comments section of any post right now that says, Black Lives Matter.
We have been referred to as them. Animals, anarchists, thugs, etc. But you assign these labels based on the color of our skin and you keep forgetting that we’re humans.
I really cannot fathom the idea that some people are not able to see past the color of my skin, to see that I am here. We are here, and we are human.
We are all just one race, the human race.
I’m tired of reading Facebook posts that say “Black lives matter, but destroying property has to stop.” When the post should say…
“It’s horrible that property is being destroyed, but killing innocent people based on the color of their skin, killing people who are simply asking for basic human rights, has to stop.”
First of all, the BLM movement is against vandalism. There are two completely different things happening and still, no one is listening to the message. There are peaceful protesters and there are people who are creating violence to backfire on the movement.
The fact that people even feel the need to create this violence because people of color do not want to bear the weight of racial injustice any longer is an issue in itself. You are trying to stop us from being equal.
But the fact that this many people are STILL more worried about material value than a black life is just unbelievable.
So the message, to be clear, is that BLACK LIVES MATTER.
Once again, this is not saying that all lives do not matter. But if my house is on fire, do not expect the firefighters to show up to your house that is not on fire.
BLACK LIVES MATTER.
I went to a protest here in the quad cities and we marched up the streets with clear messages. Black lives matter, no justice no peace, hands up don’t shoot, silence is violence. There were children, little, beautiful, brown, boys and girls, maybe six or seven years old screaming from a car with the march. They screamed black lives matter. At the end of the march, it was heartbreaking hearing the stories of racial injustices. The grandparents out there walking with us, apologizing for not doing a better job fighting this fight back in their day. But the children, it absolutely broke my heart seeing and hearing such a young person saying their life matters, begging you to hear it.
AS IF WE HAVE TO VALIDATE IT. No one should have to worry about the color of their skin affecting whether or not they get to live or die. No one should have to. But, people of color do, and I will say it again.
PEOPLE OF COLOR WORRY ABOUT WHETHER WE WILL LIVE OR DIE.
I do not feel safe. I do not feel safe around people because I do not know if they have a pre-conceived notion that makes them think I am a threat because of the color of my skin. I do not feel safe because I worry that one day my brother might encounter a police officer that may consider him a threat because of the color of his skin. I do not feel safe because I cannot ensure the safety of good people because others do not look past the color of their skin. I do not feel safe because I fear that if I were to bring a child into this world, they would not be able to bear it because of the color of their skin. People of color are not safe because you stereotype us as a threat, therefore a target.
I do not feel safe.
I do not feel safe a lot of the time. Often times, I find myself on edge when a police officer drives by. Not because I am doing anything wrong and not because the cops are doing anything wrong either. But simply because of the color of my skin.
What if it was me? What if my life ended because of a cop with a couple of excuses?
Would you be upset then?
IF YOU AREN’T ANGRY THEN WHAT THE F*** IS WRONG WITH YOU?
There are good people and there are bad people. There are white people and there are people of color.
All we are asking is that you look past the color of our skin before you decide whether we are good or bad.
That being said, there are racists, and there are anti-racists. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS NOT RACIST.
If you are not fighting for racial equality, if you are okay with the injust world we have all been living in, if you would not want to walk a day in a person of color’s shoes because you are aware of the racial injustices that occur but you are not going to do anything about it, you are the problem.
So be anti-racist: help create equality among races. There are problems rooted in power and policies. But, most importantly you need to hold each other accountable because silence IS violence.
As I said, people forget how much their voice has power. In the very least…if reading this blog post, made you feel uncomfortable, then there is work to be done. It is your moral responsibility as a human being to give a fuck. So use your voice and speak up.
“I see you. I hear you. I stand with you. I will use my vote to get rid of the leadership that enables a part of the problem. I will continue to actively be anti-racist. I will not stop until it has been resolved.”