This piece is in response to the recent riots in Baltimore
MD after the death of another man at the hands of the police. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/29/us/baltimore-riots.html?_r=0
I am a male. I am
white. I am tired.
Black lives don’t matter.
Lives matter.
I realize that my skin color and gender leave me rather
unqualified to answer in true empathy. I
will never be able to place myself in the shoes of black-American.
Bias and prejudice may need to be violently fought; it seems
at certain times in history this true.
But I feel that now is not the time for that, at least not in this Country of “opportunity”. There are perhaps not enough opportunities
for every citizen, but we not at risk of running out of opportunities yet. Too many people simply opt out. In this country bias and prejudice should be
fought not with violence, but with action.
Show that you are a capable black leader. Show that you are a respectful (not subservient)
black citizen. Show that you’re a loving
black father. If you are those things,
then remove the prefix “black”. You are
a capable leader, you are a respectful citizen, you are a loving father. We don’t say “he is such a good White leader”
(though some might think it.) The wars
that are being fought are largely self-inflicted now. The work of the previous generations being
largely undone.
“…Tha Police.” (N.W.A. 1988)
There are wicked people in this world. Your job (Police, Military, Doctors, Teachers,
Lawyers etc.) doesn’t make you good or bad; you are a person (Black, white, all
that) who is responsible to act well. It
doesn’t surprise or shock me that there are persons in the Police force who
make bad decisions; wicked decisions even.
They should be punished.
Most of the national cases of Police brutality against black
citizens (at last as reported in the media) seem to indicate fault on the side
of the Police Officer. But it is worth
pointing out that the Black men (and woman?) who are unjustifiably being beaten
and killed, are not fully innocent, or at least not intelligent. This is not to say they DESERVE to be beaten
and killed, but the fault is not fully on the side of the Police. Many have made aggressive actions towards the
officers, many have fled, or resisted.
This is either an indication of unlawful action, or stupidity. An intelligent person would not unnecessarily
put himself or herself at risk by running from a Police Officer, especially
with the current trend of police using unnecessary force.
The Nation seems at risk, with city after city falling to
these headline killings and lootings. Body
cameras on the Police Officer’s are a short game fix that would probably
help. But the problem runs deeper, and
farther back. Precautions at the
Officer/Victim level are insufficient.
The problems are probably too big to be solved with
blustering, or policy. We need personal
reform. We need citizens working
together. We need Black and White people
working hard until the terms are no longer important. There needs to be personal, as well as
organizational accountability. Stop
being racist. Easy right?
I honestly don’t know what the solution is. But I am tired of hearing the same story; the
same story from both sides. Seek
Justice, but more importantly, seek progress.
This is largely an American problem.
Let’s look at the success stories of other integrated countries, lets
talk to each other honestly. Let’s
swallow our own preconceptions and live next to each other. I am a white man who lives in a predominantly
black neighborhood and I am glad for it.
I begin to see that these people (color irrelevant) are my
neighbors. Some are good, some are
kind. Some are disrespectful and rude,
some are threatening. We are all people,
silly people.
Black lives don’t matter.
Lives matter.
