A post and a hashtag may feel like empty activism coming from someone like me who has experienced a life of privilege. I acknowledge this full-heartedly and know that while I will never understand the pain the African American community endures, I stand beside you to fight its unnecessary reoccurrence.
While the media has tendencies to categorize individuals in groups of 'us' and 'them' in America, the bottom line is we're all human beings with stories that deserve to be told, but to do that, EVERYONE must have the opportunity to live.
The sad fact is that our society doesn't grant every citizen that right; in fact, it's depriving the African American community time after time by treating it like a privilege. African American's shouldn't have to keep writing their stories in fear, and white people such as myself need to stop muting truths that don't look the same as our own.
This isn't just the African American community's problem, this is an America problem. This isn't just a Minneapolis Police Department issue, this is a society issue. We might've not noticed it as blatantly before the George Floyd protests, but now that we have, there aren't any excuses for turning back.
America isn't just segregated by skin color, but also by our indifference.
Lives like George Floyd's won't be lived if people like 'us' only educate ourselves on the aftermath. Living shouldn't be a privilege, and it's more than a shame that Floyd won't have the opportunity to write his story. Protests have made a lot of noise, but no change occurs until it's from within. Acknowledging our fault in the matter is where this begins, and changing our behavior is where it progresses.
Like so many, I don't condone violence, but the emotions experienced are those I haven't bared. However, I believe in justice, and while it's not easily achieved, I think the possibility of it is most significant when we lean toward education. I have so much to learn, and I want to hear it. Do you? We tell our side of the story all the time, now it's time for us to listen.
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