It is more clear to me than ever that I live in a divided country. All I know is every time I turn on the the news another black man or woman is being unjustly killed by the police. I understand that this topic has become very political, but it is one of humanism before it is one of politics. You may tell me that the media chooses to accentuate these instances of police brutality on black men to push a leftist agenda. You could even be right. Regardless, these men and women are dead. We’ve seen them plead for mercy. Their gasps for breath echo through the American conscience on a loop. We’ve seen cops walk away from the seen unscathed, with blood on their hands. We’ve seen judges interpret the law differently for them because they’re blinded by the reflection from their shiny badges. We’ve seen our executive branch turn into a reality tv show. We’ve seen the president of the free world turn twitter fingers into trigger fingers. We’ve seen the American people split into factions, each one waving its own special flag, absent of red, white, and blue. When was the last time you felt safe around police? This fear applies regardless of your color, but especially if you are a minority. If they’re supposed to protect and serve then why do I feel like a criminal every time I see the colors of our great nation flashing before me? Why have those colors become synonymous with fear? Just a couple months ago the whole country came to a halt so that we could protect those amongst us who were vulnerable. In return for putting the economy on pause, we received $1,200 and a pat on the back. Weeks later we are still confined to our homes with no money to spare and the inability to provide for our families. More lives are now being ruined as a consequence of a lockdown which is absolutely unjustified considering what we now know about this virus. The fact that the so-called “Greatest Country In The World” does not possess competent leaders with the wherewithal to reassess a constantly changing state of affairs and adjust accordingly, is frankly pathetic and unacceptable. Meanwhile, in the midst of all this chaos, we find our country in the middle of a presidential election where our two options consist of a Dementia patient and a reality show star.
I am not very political, nor am I trying to be. All I am trying to say is that there are a multitude of problems that need to be addressed immediately. Our country is as the most divided it has ever been in my short 21 years of life. Under this amount of tension, something is bound to give. We cannot go on living this way much longer. As self-serving and ethnocentric as this may sound, for a long time the rest of the world has looked to the United States of America to set the standard for how a country should be run. While America is still a great country, it goes without staying that we have lowered the standard we set for ourselves 243 years ago. This cannot and should not ever be tolerated. Every excuse is worn out at this point.
In these trying times, let us remember that reason is still with us. Discourse, especially between opposing factions, it not a relic of the past. Let us strip ourselves and each other, of all labels. Let us remember how our Republic came to be. Don’t cancel your enemy, try to understand her. Change will not be easy, and it will not be quick, but right now it is necessary. Change, no matter how grand, begins at the level of the individual. It starts with identifying and verbalizing to yourself what you want to see change. Then be the change you want to see in the world and the results will be exponential. The process will be rough and won’t always be pretty, but it will be worth it. Take it upon yourself to be a catalyst for love.
