Coming Together in a Time of Tragedy



There has been a growing divisiveness in our country between civilians and police officers in the last several years. Race relations are undeniably strained and it seems as if we are more divided as a nation than we have ever been in my lifetime. It is a frightening time to be a Black or Brown person in this country but also very frightening to be a police officer today. Police shootings of innocent Black and Brown (mostly) men NEEDS to stop. These senseless murders are rooted in stereotypes, prejudices, and institutional/systematic racism. We have a race problem in our justice system and I don’t think many people would argue that. However, lumping all police officers together and categorizing them as power hungry racists is just as dangerous as reducing an entire racial group as being violent criminals. Both of these depictions are static, inaccurate, and offensive. Instead of hating on each other and letting our personal biases create further racial tension and division, let’s learn the history of racial discrimination in this country and understand that this history is painful for some of us, makes some of us feel guilty or embarrassed, and at the same time elicits feelings of resentment from others. Let’s allow ourselves to feel the un-comfortability that may come along with acknowledging our own privileges and work towards equity for all Americans. Let’s understand that the racial inequity that we are seeing unfold in our justice system goes beyond the interpersonal and is rooted in decades of structural and institutionalized racism. Let’s realize that we need to go beyond blaming cops to examining and investigating the law enforcement institutions because real changes are not going to be made until we change the system under which these senseless murders are occurring. Let’s work towards making changes in gun legislation so that we are no longer 10 times more likely to be killed by guns when compared to people in other developed countries. Let’s come together for the families, friends, and loved ones of‪#‎AltonSterling‬, ‪#‎PhilandoCastile‬, ‪#‎BrentThompson‬, and the other brave‪#‎Dallas‬ Police officers who were all robbed of their lives this week.

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