Not Just Our Problem

I have tried to write on this particular topic several times and I keep getting stumped. I write a few lines, delete everything and start all over again.

Tackling the issue of race, police brutality and how it affects me as a black male is much more difficult than I initially thought.

I wasn’t born in this country, but I have called it home for over a decade now. I came here in search of an education and the American dream. America has had a profound effect on my life including shaping my thoughts and beliefs. I have no qualms calling myself an American now, its certainly done more for me in terms of character building than my own country of birth. Interestingly enough, I must admit that on coming here, identity and race was never something I dwelled upon much. Maybe its because I come from a country where everyone else looked like me. At Kentucky where I got my undergraduate degree at a private university, I was one of only a few other Africans at the college. I remember distinctly how I would walk into the cafeteria and every group would congregate together, finding ways to distance themselves from the other. It was a rude awakening but one that has begun to make more sense with these recent events. I bring this up because until Americans realize that police brutality isn’t just a black problem, not much will change.

On social media, I couldn’t help but notice that the ones who spoke out vehemently on the deaths of the young men I mentioned above happened to be fellow blacks. I have observed, sometimes hoping that other non-blacks would chime in and denounce the deaths of this young men, but in most cases, all I have seen are people who have moved on with their lives, or simply don’t want to acknowledge that police brutality is an issue that a certain racial group in this country deals with constantly.

I tried to talk to one of my closest friends about it, but every time such comes up, we always end up getting into heated arguments. I have tried to understand why this is so, perhaps race is something that non-blacks are uncomfortable talking about. Perhaps its the way blacks react to non-blacks talking about race, maybe its something that I could never understand, but bottom line, this is something that keeps happening and I wonder how widespread such is. If I am having difficulties getting someone who I consider one of the closest people in my life, to understand the plight of blacks in terms of the law, how much so a complete stranger?

The unfortunate deaths of police officers in Dallas, set off a hailstorm of outrage, but unsurprisingly, voices who had been quiet about the deaths of Sterling and Castile, were quick to excoriate protesters and activists for playing a role in getting these officers killed. Never mind the fact that Black lives matter is a movement that was started to vocalize the outrage the black community feels because of the deaths of its members. If we were treated fairly by the law, that organization would not exist today.

It bothers me that race is still as big an issue as it is in 2016, and looks like it will continue to be one going forward.

Here’s what I believe, as great a nation as this is, I see no reason why we all can’t coexist. Yes, there are certain groups and factions, who thrive in spreading hate. They claim superiority due to race, yet the fact that they peddle bigotry and prejudice shows just how weak their mentalities are. We cannot and we must not let such dictate who we are. I have thought about what would happen if I were in similar situation as the two men I started this post with. I honestly don’t know if I would have done anything differently. In the case of Philando, it seemed he had done everything the officer had ordered him to, and still ended up with bullets in him. I have noticed that around cops now there’s a certain level of trepidation for me, though to be honest it has always been so. The events of recent probably taking it up a notch or two.

It saddens me, that the very people who are meant to protect and defend us, are the ones a lot of us feel so insecure around. At a point when we begin to fear the police more than the so called bad guys, there’s a serious trust issue.

Sadly, scenes from Baton Rouge and many other places around the country, only confirm that the black community is fed up. Can anyone realistically predict what will happen if more of these videos keep popping up without any meaningful action being taken? Your guess is as good as mine. America, not just black America has got to come together. We need solutions.