A few weeks ago, George Floyd was just a regular guy, probably dealing with the same fears and frustrations many of us have due to the pandemic. Now, he is the center of America's attention, for reasons his loved ones only dread. I cannot fathom the agony and despair the Floyd family is feeling, having lost George so suddenly and tragically. It's heartbreaking and horrific and everything bad. My heart goes out to them.
Why does this happen in America? What happened to the notion of "all men are created equal?" That's what we were taught in school, yet our actions speak otherwise. Yes, police brutality is a crisis that disproportionately affects our black neighbors. But that is not the only problem black Americans face in this country. It's that black women are about 3 times more likely to die of maternal mortality. It's that predominantly black neighborhoods are more likely to experience high rates of poverty. Even now, black Americans are dying from COVID-19 at higher rates. And the list goes on. At the core of these problems is one massive issue, and it is currently affecting regular people, just like you and me. It is called systemic racism.
There is no "one solution." The problem has deep roots in our nation's dark side of history, and there is a huge portion of the public who won't even acknowledge that this is a problem, nor the fact that we all have implicit biases. What I do hope we can all agree on, however, is that with all of these human beings hurting, we can do so much better. But how can we expect such a radical change of society, if we do not radically change ourselves? Maybe, just maybe, if we start by taking a good, raw look at who we are, and challenge ourselves to be better people, and to stand up for each other, we can change the course of our future. You may ask, "Why should I care? I have problems too, I feel forgotten too, and no one seems to care about me. Why should I care about other people?" Well, this is why: because the people you consider "other," are not. They are you. Because if God forbid, some injustice were to happen to you and your community, wouldn't you want the same kind of support? Maybe we should start by having each other's backs more often, and see where we can go from there. Listening, learning, and loving, together.
God bless.
Love,
Vanessa
