Hi guys. How are are you? No really...how are...you? When was the last time you truly asked yourself that and were you honest with yourself and how you truly felt?
To be honest with you? I've been thinking. I mean, really thinking about the most recent events that have occurred lately. People of all races all over the world have mourned & protested the untimely, unnecessary death of Mr. George Floyd. It would be crazy to not view the video of the death of Mr. Floyd and not have your heart ache. For me personally? My heart broke and I welp...
Where Do We Go From Here.....
As I watch the news daily, I see everything that is taking place from the protests, riots, police brutality and corporations speaking out more.... I can't help but think about our past as a Black Community and as a nation. I can't help but think about how this narrative has played out several times in various forms for over 400 years. Lets be clear, the current state of "policing" is slavery in a different form. Today's policing is modern day lynching and slavery.
Unfortunately, George Floyd is among countless Black men & women who have had their lives snatched away by the hands of a police officer. What is alarming to me is that now corporations and more white people are jumping on board but were mostly silent when Mike Brown, Alton Sterling, Trayon Martin, Philando Castille, Tamir Rice, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and so on.....and so forth. Don't get me wrong! I believe the support from all races over these past few weeks has been necessary and a needed catalyst for change but my God!....Why did it take so many Black men and women to be murdered at the hands of police or racist white supremacists for everyone to "wake up?" For corporations to wake up and finally declare that, BLACK LIVES MATTER. I'm glad that people appear to be coming on board but I just hate it took so long and so many lives to be taken. Even with the positive changes that are taking place, we still have such a long way to go. Racism is such a deep systematic issue that must be transformed with changes within how laws are written and executed. Police Reform is way past due.
The fact that I was born Black and can be gunned down or suffocated in the middle of the street just because I'm black? Or be haunted and chased down by white supremacists while jogging because I'm Black? This level of hatred and cruelty will always pass my level of understanding. It appears as if Black People are being put on a trial for something we can't change; as soon as I enter this world, I am Black- no matter what. I can't help the color of my skin and the blatant racism that existed before I came into this world. The sad reality is even before I arrived in this world, some White people could care less if I lived or died. This is deep and disturbing on levels I'm not sure how to fully articulate yet.
Learned racism and learned hatred has caused some police officers to operate in a state of rage and terror versus acting from a place of service and support. Some of them have confused their positions of service and have replaced it with an attitude of warfare on people that they claim to "protect." The police officers who we pay our tax dollars to are the same people who are killing Black people and other people of color in the streets. Here's the thing. Its always been crazy to me how animals are protected more than people and definitely Black people. This must change.
To say that we are living in sad and uncertain times is an understatement; almost an insult.
Here is the call of action that I have placed on myself and I place on you-the reader of this blog.
Speak up. Say something. Now is not a time to be silent.
If you are a White person who wants to know what to do. Speak up. Speak Up Publicly. Sending your Black friend a text saying that you are supporting them is cool but if your other white friends and people who associate themselves with you don't know where you stand? In the fight against racism? Your voice is silent.
If you are in a leadership position. Please hear me. SPEAK TO YOUR ENTIRE TEAM. Don't just send a message to the one Black girl on your team. The entire team needs to know where you stand.
If you see a petition, sign it. Share as much information as you can to your family members, friends AND on your social media pages. Again, be vocal.
For those who still don't know what to say or where to go from here. This issue of racism is a matter of right and wrong. Racism is wrong, cruel and demonic. If you know something is wrong or someone isn't being treated properly, that should be all you need to press forward to the mark of justice and speak up. Educate yourself and read about the history of African American and the brutal events that have taken place on American soil.
Remember that until BLACK LIVES MATTER? All lives do not matter collectively. Black lives must be included in the ALL for All lives to matter.
I want to provide a few resources below and some books that you should check out. I'm currently reading "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson. It is one of the best books I've ever read. Please go to Amazon and purchase it today!
Click Link Below To Purchase "Just Mercy."
Click Link Below To Purchase Crusade For Justice: The Autobiography of Ida B. Wells.
Click Link Below To Purchase Reconstruction Updated Edition: America's Unfinished Revolution.
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Seek Justice For Breonna Taylor Below.
"Without wise leadership, a nation falls; there is safety in having many advisers." Proverbs 11:14 (NLT)
Jesus Is Love,
Chelsea