Some of you saw yesterday or this morning that I have deleted some of the comments on my status. I deleted them because I did not feel the responses were helpful towards a goal of healing and reconciliation. Facebook proves time and time again to not be the proper realm for debate. I used the status to share my thoughts and to hopefully call people to respectful dialogue around race. The protesting and outcry has more to do with the built up anger and frustration of systemic racism than it does with the death of these two men. That is not to diminish their deaths but speaks to the great need for dialogue around race. As I mentioned in my original post, I believe now is not the time to talk about how people respond to police officers. I believe police officers deserve respect and I am grateful for the work they do. What I shared is in no way to be disrespectful towards officers or demean the work they do. A conversation about how people respond to police officers needs to happen but right now there is a much more pressing issue. You do not see white people taking to the streets in protests after a black person kills a white person because our society does not have a history of violence or oppression towards white people. Keep in mind that slavery in the US ended less than 150 years ago, segregation in schools was made illegal only 60 years ago, and in other realms only 50 years ago. Even after segregation was made illegal it continued for years after that and there were many other civil rights struggles that continued and still continue today. We still have much work to do for civil rights and racial reconciliation. I again would encourage everyone to reach out to someone of a different race to have conversations about race in our nation. It may feel uncomfortable to do so but is a discomfort that needs to be felt. I invite people to share how they are working towards racial reconciliation or for persons of color to share their own experiences. If you would like to talk about something else then I invite you to send me a private message so that we can find a time to talk over the phone, via video chat, or in person, preferably over a shared meal or drink.
Posted on: Sat, 06 Dec 2014 15:00:19 +0000
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