Stand As One
990 people were killed by police in 2015. 990! So far this year, at least 515 have met the same fate.
Every day, we are bombarded by news that speaks of violence, racism, transgender bathroom rights, LGBT rights, illegal immigration, and religion. We are separating ourselves into groups when we need to be fighting back as a nation.
Peace officers are killing our people. They’re our people; people of this nation. Their skin color shouldn’t be a factor in your outrage. In fact, of the 990 deaths in 2015, 494 were white and 258 were black. There are many other considerations besides race, however. Who was brandishing their weapon? Who was truly a threat? These are the things this nation needs to discuss. Race and religion should not be the primary arguments in any story that involves violence against our citizens.
It doesn’t matter that Philando Castile was black. A citizen of these United States was murdered by a police officer after being pulled over for a broken tail light. He was shot in the car in front of his girlfriend and her daughter because he had a gun which he was licensed to carry. Why are gun rights activists not all over this? A man was killed for applying his 2nd Amendment rights. A Minnesota man was killed at a traffic stop in front of two passengers. That’s frightening. That’s the story.
Whenever we separate ourselves, and our nation, into little pockets of people, we fall victim to the rhetoric we are given by the news media. They pit us against each other based on our beliefs. ‘Are you anti-Muslim? Look at this event!’ ‘Here’s one for all of you who are prejudiced against the LGBT community. If you are part of that community, here’s more fuel for your fire.’ And, let’s not forget Donald Trump who will go down in history with the quote “We’re going to build a wall.”
On Immigration, Theodore Roosevelt said:
“In the first place, we should insist that if the immigrant who comes here in good faith becomes an American and assimilates himself to us, he shall be treated on an exact equality with everyone else, for it is an outrage to discriminate against any such man because of creed, or birthplace, or origin. But this is predicated upon the person’s becoming in every facet an American, and nothing but an American … There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn’t an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag … We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language … and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people.”
Theodore Roosevelt 1907
There can be no divided allegiance. He said that in regards to the Immigrant. Either they’re American or they aren’t. I’m saying that in regards to race, religion, and beliefs. We are all citizens of this nation regardless of skin color or religion. We need to fight for our collective rights as a nation and end violence against our people. We need to stand as one against those that would use fear to bully anyone within boundaries of our country regardless of citizenship. Stop allowing the rhetoric to segregate us and turn us against each other.
