We are upset. We are outraged. We want blood and some of you might have been thinking that this time it isn't enough to just put up a facebook status. Some of you might have thought that perhaps now is the time for some retribution. This retribution comes in various forms. Many want to protest and are protesting. Many want to riot and destroy things (typically their own neighborhoods, which is a shame). And some just want to live out the Hammurabi code to its fullest extent. A life for a life, specifically a white life for a black life. And all of this want is justified. Those of you who look down on this, need to be quiet. You don't know. You don't know the disappointment a minority feels as they think about this "colorblind" justice system. You don't fully comprehend the fear blacks and other minorities now feel as they see yet another young man die because he "looked suspicious". You don't know the anger minorities have, since their country and justice system has failed them. Yet you expect us to adhere to a sense of honor, stewardship, and overall justice. Where were those virtues for Trayvon?
But this post isn't about you. We've been far too focused on you and it's time for us to take back what is ours. But we need to do it on our own terms. That's why I plea for those of you who choose to react emotionally, do so with words. For those of you who wish to cry, sing out to the community. For those of you who wish to shoot and kill, fashion bullets out of ballots and euthanize this unjust system. If you want to start a war, then let us charge with a well coordinated brigade, not a haphazard militia. I am not promoting inaction. I am not asking us to put our pitchforks away. I merely want us to succeed in the most effective way possible, if not for our community, then for Trayvon.
Does this mean no violence? Well, some of you might find a well coordinated way to perpetrate violence in response to all of this. And that would be terrorism. I am not at full liberty to pass judgement on you for doing so. While I am outraged about this situation, my pale skin makes it so that the brunt of this tragedy doesn't sting quite as much as it does for those of you who are people of color (this doesn't mean that I am not stereotyped based on other physical attributes). I don't know if you feel these acts of violence are necessary just to regain your sanity and security. But before you do, I want you to think about our morals. I want you to think about your children and your loved ones. I want you think about us in a colorblind sense for a second, so that you might be able to empathize for a second for all those who you are intending to harm. Then if you really feel it is necessary, I will ask you to shoot me first, not because I love the people I'm protecting, but because I love our dignity as a community. And for those of you who feel dignity has gone to the wayside, I urge you to think of the innocent lives that might be caught in the crossfire. Such lives cannot be weighed less than Trayvon's. For when we begin picking and choosing the value of human life based on color, we are no better than those who oppress us. Also let's not forget our white brothers and sisters, who stand with us in unity, not only when it is convenient, but also when it is necessary. Will you risk harming them for a misguided sense of justice?
This post is for minorities and our allies. If you do not fall within that group and feel threatened by this post, then good. We are threatened all the time and the fact that we have finally decided to take action should be unsettling for you. I am not going to say I don't condone violence. Such a message would distort the complicated feelings I have towards violence. I personally would never engage in it and I believe the previous paragraph outlined my plea for those who intend to do so. But when it comes to talk of violence and it's possible ramifications, immediately ostracizing people isn't the answer. We need the thought of this violence out in the open that way we are all honest with how much this has hurt us.
Some of you might think that none of us actually consider violence a viable option, and I hope that is true. But unfortunately something this triggering and this horrible is bound to have negative ramifications. To assume violence will not happen would be careless. That is why I wrote this post. To not only stop any small conflagration of violence, but also to re-purpose it into a meaningful cry for social change.
But this post isn't about you. We've been far too focused on you and it's time for us to take back what is ours. But we need to do it on our own terms. That's why I plea for those of you who choose to react emotionally, do so with words. For those of you who wish to cry, sing out to the community. For those of you who wish to shoot and kill, fashion bullets out of ballots and euthanize this unjust system. If you want to start a war, then let us charge with a well coordinated brigade, not a haphazard militia. I am not promoting inaction. I am not asking us to put our pitchforks away. I merely want us to succeed in the most effective way possible, if not for our community, then for Trayvon.
Does this mean no violence? Well, some of you might find a well coordinated way to perpetrate violence in response to all of this. And that would be terrorism. I am not at full liberty to pass judgement on you for doing so. While I am outraged about this situation, my pale skin makes it so that the brunt of this tragedy doesn't sting quite as much as it does for those of you who are people of color (this doesn't mean that I am not stereotyped based on other physical attributes). I don't know if you feel these acts of violence are necessary just to regain your sanity and security. But before you do, I want you to think about our morals. I want you to think about your children and your loved ones. I want you think about us in a colorblind sense for a second, so that you might be able to empathize for a second for all those who you are intending to harm. Then if you really feel it is necessary, I will ask you to shoot me first, not because I love the people I'm protecting, but because I love our dignity as a community. And for those of you who feel dignity has gone to the wayside, I urge you to think of the innocent lives that might be caught in the crossfire. Such lives cannot be weighed less than Trayvon's. For when we begin picking and choosing the value of human life based on color, we are no better than those who oppress us. Also let's not forget our white brothers and sisters, who stand with us in unity, not only when it is convenient, but also when it is necessary. Will you risk harming them for a misguided sense of justice?
This post is for minorities and our allies. If you do not fall within that group and feel threatened by this post, then good. We are threatened all the time and the fact that we have finally decided to take action should be unsettling for you. I am not going to say I don't condone violence. Such a message would distort the complicated feelings I have towards violence. I personally would never engage in it and I believe the previous paragraph outlined my plea for those who intend to do so. But when it comes to talk of violence and it's possible ramifications, immediately ostracizing people isn't the answer. We need the thought of this violence out in the open that way we are all honest with how much this has hurt us.
Some of you might think that none of us actually consider violence a viable option, and I hope that is true. But unfortunately something this triggering and this horrible is bound to have negative ramifications. To assume violence will not happen would be careless. That is why I wrote this post. To not only stop any small conflagration of violence, but also to re-purpose it into a meaningful cry for social change.
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