In light of all the terrible tragedies this week, emerges a country more divided than ever. In a frustrating and upsetting time like this, it’s easy to spew hatred and create more polarization, but the most important thing to remember is that this animosity will only drive us further apart. Attacking an entire race or a whole organization will not fix anything.

First, let me start off by saying that violence is never the answer. Innocent lives were lost this week due to injustice and senseless anger. No reform, criminal sentence or condolences could ever make up for what the families and friends of these victims have lost. No matter how anyone feels about another person, organization or race, killing is NOT the way to solve any problems.

Let me continue by saying that I respect police officers. I understand that their job can be dangerous, frustrating and underpaid. I also understand that they can be treated negatively due to the stereotype that they’re all bad and unnecessarily violent, which is definitely not true for the majority of cops.

However, I also don’t believe in denouncing or questioning the struggles of other, especially struggles that I have never personally faced. Who am I to tell a black man that he shouldn’t be afraid of police officers? Or to question the legitimacy of discrimination he has faced? As a white woman, I will never experience any of this and have no right to claim he is lying, complaining or over exaggerating.

Here is where the real problem lies: people who try to deny or undermine the truth, even when there is evidence and statistics supporting it. After the initial video of Alton Sterling surfaced, people became rightly outraged, demanding justice. However, skeptics immediately jumped to defend the officers and undermine the minority in the situation in any way possible. “You can’t see his right hand in the video, he was probably reaching for the gun,” “well he shouldn’t have been resisting, that’s what happens when you don’t listen to the police” and “he had a criminal record, he shouldn’t have been allowed to have a gun” are just a few of the retorts I’ve heard.

Let’s entertain these (ignorant) comments for just a minute. So even if he was reaching for his gun, was resisting and had a criminal record, that gives police officers the right to shoot him in the chest four times? Police officers are trained to disarm if possible and only to kill if there is no other option. Tell me, if a man is pinned to the ground, outnumbered and his free hand reaches for a gun, is there really no other option than to murder him?

You claim all lives matter yet when a black man is murdered in cold blood, you try to justify it or turn a blind eye. However, when white police officers are killed, suddenly you’re furious. Where was your anger and sadness when Phillando Turncastle was shot for having a broken taillight? Instead, you defended police officers, claiming they’re not all violent. Yet when white people are killed at a Black Lives Matter protest, you are angry for the victims as well as blame all of Black Lives Matter, even when one of the perpetrators acknowledges that he is not affiliated with any organization and dislikes BLM himself. You are a hypocrite. Not all police officers are radical or violent but all of black lives matters is? Your logic is flawed and changes based on race. Your hatred for an organization raising awareness for their struggles shows your true colors and only proves that organization is necessary.

You might argue that there are some violent members of Black Lives Matters and that is true. In nearly any group of people, there will be radicals. However, those radical members do not represent the entire organization. And disassociated, hateful people attacking innocent officers at a protest definitely doesn't represent them either.

When a black man is the victim, a news story about him is accompanied by an old mug shot, yet when a white woman murders her two daughters, a nice selfie is used instead. The girlfriend of Phillando Turncastle records her boyfriend being murdered and she is arrested, while the officer who killed is given paid leave. A black man is accused of rape and is given 16 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, while a white male from Indiana University is given probation for being found guilty of two counts of rape. If that doesn’t show inequality and injustice to people of color, then I’m not sure what will. If that doesn’t prove why black lives matter is so vital to giving these people a voice and making a difference, then you just don’t get it.

You tell minorities, "stop complaining," "you already have equal rights" and "go do something" as you sit and complain. Please tell me, what exactly are you doing that is so productive in solving the issue? While others are speaking out, you try and bring them down. You are the counterproductive one. What scares you so much about equality? Does denying racism and oppression that you, have never, and will never face, convince you that it doesn't exist?

Police brutality and racial inequality IS a real issue. We need reform. All lives matter ignores the bigger issue and undermines black lives matter, an organization that is simply trying to shed light on discrimination and profiling that they face and call for social reform. To those of you who deny the struggles of people of color, you are the problem. Violence and discrimination is never the answer, but neither is ignoring the root cause.