As an African - American citizen of the United States, I'm not having a good week. As a born and bred Dallasite, I feel like I'm living in a nightmare. I'm worried that this country is on the precipice, that there is some some of reckoning coming and I feel powerless to stop it. So I'm just going to free form my thoughts and you can take them as you see fit.
I'm confused by a double standard that I see in the press, on social media and in the world. "Black Lives Matter activists should be held accountable for their hateful rhetoric" but not Donald Trump or that Walsh asshat?
I don't paint all police officers with the same brush. I've been told that I've dated enough law enforcement to start my own small force (people got jokes). I've seen good cops, I've seen great cops, and I've seen super-bad crazy cops. They come in all flavors. I can't hold an entire profession accountable for the act of a percentage of their fools. However, I do expect law enforcement to revamp their training and disciplinary procedures.
Similarly, I wouldn't expect all Black people to be held accountable for the crazed acts of one. To think that anyone advocates for the taking of lives, blue, black or polka-dot is crazy. But Black Lives Matter exists because those lives are being snatched disproportionately. This in no way means that black people don't care about white, blue or polka dot lives. It means that if violence in America is like a triage unit, this group is more endangered than others. You treat the most critical injuries first.
BLM is not a hate group. the KKK is a hate group. BLM does not have as one of its core mission the extermination or degradation of people who don't look like them. BLM is not a terrorist group, ISIS/ISIL members are terrorists. BLM does not want to kill or overthrow any governments. This isn't supposition, this is fact. BLM is an activist group that wants to call attention to a pervasive issue of violence against African-Americans and if possible, affect positive change. Period.
Random but relevant - I hate guns which is a hard stance to have in Texas. But probably everyone I've ever dated had one, my father had a rifle he kept locked in a closet. The protection of one's home and loved ones is important. I know the old "it's not guns that kill people, people kill people" meme. It just that once a gun is introduced into a situation, there's too much opportunity for drama, trauma and death. I can't understand the use of deadly force when a taser (or a fist) will do. So when I see people being killed with guns, it concerns me.
I feel like a lot of people are too polarized. They're refusing to see the shades or grey or reach for a happy medium. They are being stirred up by hateful dangerous rhetoric of people who quite honestly don't know what the f**k they're talking about. The kind of people you wouldn't want governing a small island with the population of 2 are stone's throw away from a frightening amount of power in this country
These are nervous times, we need serious, thoughtful and open-minded, open-hearted people. We need togetherness, not exclusion. We need to hold each other tighter, not find ways to segment into more disparate factions. We prayer to whatever higher power you believe in. We need to concentrate on our common goals - continuation of humanity, happy lives, pursuit of happiness, cheaper Hamilton tickets. These are things that uplift the greater good.
Unless we no longer give a shit about the greater good and it's everyone for themselves... How are you feeling about the events of the past week? Thoughts, comments, suggestions?