I am exhausted. I am drained.
I cannot imagine what the families and loved ones of those gone are enduring. What kind of world am I raising my children in?
Scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed lately has become burdensome. Don’t get me wrong. I love politics and a good debate (I have my degree in Political Science); however, I find myself too tired to entertain most posts. Every single person has an opinion (it feels like it anyway) and is letting it be known (myself included). The trouble I guess I am having is the tone of this conversation. I do not believe this should be politicized. On one hand it is very simple: several people died last week because another made a decision. The facts need to be examined and not be exploited. We should come together and work on a solution for everyone (which, of course, is the more complicated aspect of this issue).
Even here in the Seacoast you can see the divide. Why do people react as though it’s us versus them? This mentality is not limited to this topic; unfortunately, its has seeped into many areas. Divisions need to be mended.
“We must live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Is this our fate? Sadly, last week reiterated that we are going in this direction. Something must change for the better.
Growing up I never had law enforcement officers in my family. I had a bit of a lead foot and when I was 15-years-old (yes, I only had a permit) I was pulled over for the first time, and it wouldn’t be my last. I lost my license twice before I turned 18! I had a lot to learn and I reacted rudely each time it happened. Now that I am older, I can see it more clearly. They were trying to keep me and every other unfortunate soul on the road safe. Oh, wait! Did I mention that I have a sister and brother-in-law in law enforcement? Now that I know what their reality is like, I have a very different perspective.
I also have a niece and nephew that have a black father and white mother (my cousin’s children, but she is like a sister). How confusing do you think this is for them? They are literally in the middle of this national conversation. What should their mother and father say to them?
I do not have all the answers. I have many thoughts and opinions like so many do. What I do know is that labels can divide people. Labels can marginalize people. Labels can confine people. However, I do recognize that semantics are very powerful and important. Our words reveal our mindset and our mindset is what drives our climate, our culture, our conversation.
As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
Let’s us move forward together and love each other. Stop blaming the person foreign to you but reach out with a loving hand. Will we be brothers and sisters to each other or will we be fools? What do you think MLK would say we are teaching our children?
I so appreciate seeing addressed here this issue of the still real and raw racial divide in our country and the yearning for it to be conjoined anew. I can’t wait until the day when our differences are not ostracizing labels but observations to celebrate. The problem is that we cannot simply wish away the effects of a system of white superiority that has been manufactured. Look up on Youtube Franchesca Ramsey’s decoding of the implementation of word ‘caucasian’ into our societal constructs. Look up Tyler Huckabee’s article “The Problem with Saying ‘All Lives Matter'”. And then to feel uplifted again–as your article is aiming to do for all of us, Melissa 🙂 –look up videos of Officer Tommy Norman patrolling his beat with a beat. There is good out there too, and you want us to look ahead to more of it.
Monica, I appreciate your opinion and thoughts. It is important for all views to be expressed freely and without prejudice. I want to thank you for supporting our blog. I know that many people (even other contributors with this blog) do not agree with me when saying “all lives matter”. However, I do not believe it is helpful for anyone to segregate themselves from the rest. I respect your thoughts but do not believe it is racist to say everyone’s life matters. I believe we are all equal in God’s eyes and should be treated as such. I am not discounting things of the past or even incidences that happen today but if we dwell on the past without forgiveness and solutions to move forward it will never happen. Sadly, I believe there are those on both sides that profit financially and politically by having this discord among the people of this Country (and have no interest in fixing it).
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