First of all, if you are wondering who I am as you read this article (whether I am black, white, green or blue) so that you can “tell me” if I have a “right” to be speaking on the recent events regarding racist acts, then you are probably going to miss the point of this article but perhaps you, more than anyone, need to continue reading. Secondly, if you are trolling and looking for an argument, move on. Third, I am not going to “defend” myself or preface by saying that I am black, or that I love black people and have black friends. The reality is that I am not a black man who has been racially profiled or wrongfully accused or killed due to skin color so I cannot pretend to know what these men have been through – and neither can any of you that have not been through it, regardless of your color. But I am in fact a human being with a big heart and very little patience for ignorance and bullshit. I am a human being who is sick to my stomach by the actions of other human beings against other human beings and sick to my stomach by the rippling effects of these wrongful actions.
If you think racial profiling and these racist acts only affect the black population, then you are part of the problem. If you have been posting things on your social media account that start with “dear white people” or “dear cops” or anything that profiles an entire race, gender or classification, you are doing exactly what we are all mad at these police officers for doing and you are part of the problem. If you took George Floyd’s death as an opportunity to join a riot (yes, it was indeed a riot, not a protest) as a ploy to loot and get physical with people that had nothing to do with his untimely and awful death, then you are a major part of the problem. If you scroll past stories like George Floyd’s then you too are part of the problem. Burying your head in the sand will not make this problem go away and if you think it has nothing to do with you, you are wrong.
Every time an act of racism happens, it fuels a fire between human beings that should have never been prevalent. It creates a divide at a time when we need unity more than ever. It takes away another voice on both sides of a fight that should be for peace and unity throughout the country. Unfortunately, it also gives ass clowns an excuse to create another “peaceful” protest that inevitably ends in violence and attacks on people and businesses that have nothing to do with the first senseless act. If you are not outraged by the behavior and criminal acts of those participating in the looting and riots over the last few days in Minneapolis, then you are certainly a part of the problem.
This country is in the midst of a divide in the most dangerous sector possible – the top of the line. Our leaders, our officials, our guidance, our government are all at odds and without strong leadership this is bound to happen. Who answers to whom? If you are reading this thinking that I am talking about republicans, you are part of the problem. And if you are reading this thinking that I am talking about democrats, yep, you are part of the problem as well!
These “protests” and creating more violence is not the answer. Each time these racist acts happen, we open the door for those that do not know the right way to release their rage to create and cause more chaos. Each time something like this happens, in particular when it relates to a police officer, it gives the police less and less ability to serve and protect us when we truly need protection. Each time we make false accusations because of someone's race, or gender or for any reason at all, we take away someone else's truth that needed the protection and the help from an injustice done to them.
Women should not have privilege just because they are women. Police officers should not have privilege just because they are in a position of power and black men, black women for that matter, should not NOT have privilege because of their skin color. The series of events that have taken place (obviously over the entirety of time) but also, throughout this week as we bring this issue to light AGAIN and AGAIN, is absolutely outrageous and so are the repercussions that follow for this country.
I do not have the solution and I wish I did but I know we are not going to get any closer to a better world if we cannot all have a voice and find a more peaceful way to “retaliate” and get justice and change for this and any bullshit, barbaric behavior in this country together. We should be fighting against people based on their BAD BEHAVIOR not based off of their color, or gender or job. We have to do to better on all sides of this story and we have to stop racially profiling in every single way.
That means that we have to stop telling people what they can feel and what qualifiers must be in place in order for them to speak out, especially when they are on the same side of the fight. We should all be upset about all of it!
If you are not enraged by a woman being raped no matter who the rapist is or what color either of them are, then you are part of the problem. If you are not enraged by a black man being accused of sexual assault just because a woman did not want to leash her dog (see Christian Cooper’s Central Park experience) then you are part of the problem. If you are not enraged at the animal abuse stories (that some of you have a problem with others being upset about) then you are a part of the problem.
Do you get the point? We should all be enraged about ALL OF IT and we should all be ready for a CHANGE, not a demolition. And if you are still reading this wondering where I get off saying these things or thinking about the nasty comment you are going to make to wrongfully accuse me of something or tell me how I truly feel inside, then you are 1000% the problem and until you change, this is the way the world will be.