I find that now, most people have pets. Not all have a dog or even a cat. Some people prefer reptiles or rodents. But collectively, we all love our pets. I dare you to think about how you would feel if your pet was taken from you without reason.
This circumstance, happened to a family in Texas this past month.
Their beloved baby, Mr. Brown (pictured above) was shot and killed by Bexar County Sheriff’s Department officer Sean Thompson on August 31st, 2016. Mr. Brown is quite obviously a pit bull, with the negative stigma attached. But Mr. Brown was a loving, and friendly dog. Mr. Brown was not a dog that was let out of the yard because of the negative stigma put on pit bulls. Which is unfair in the first place. How can our society be okay with a person being scared for their beloved animals safety? I'm not okay with this. But on this day, Mr. Brown accidentally got loose. As a dog owner myself, I know that this is an accident that is a pet owners worst nightmare, but unfortunately, this happens sometimes.
The officer received a report of two vicious dogs being loose, although the homeowner who found them took pictures of them lying peacefully on their patios (pictured below) waiting as animal control was called to rescue the dogs, and it was apparently reported that the homeowner even fed the dog.
So why did this officer shoot? According to his explanations, he was afraid for children’s safety as they were on a busy block in the middle of summer in Texas. However, did he not think that a rifle shooting would have been a bigger threat?
It was noted that a neighbor was posting exaggerated comments on social media about Mr. Brown "viciously barking" which instilled fear in other neighbors. However, what this particular neighbor did not realize was that Mr. Brown was barking because the homeowner that found Mr. Brown was playing with the dog to try and get a picture of his name tag to call his respective owners and let them know that he was found.
The officer, is currently not being held responsible for his actions, and a family is left devastated at the loss of their beloved pet.
I am personally both devastated and concerned for these pet owners. As I could only imagine this circumstance being one of mine. The Reyes family has started a petition to find justice for Mr. Brown and is asking for any signatures to help raise awareness of this situation. You can find the link to that here - http://donotshoot.us/12536-stop-police-violence-against-pit-bulls-justice-for-mr-brown/ - if you would like to sign and raise awareness for this terrible loss, and the losses of pit bulls all over the country. These dogs are not all harmful, and just because a few bad people trained a few bad tempered dogs does not mean that all pit bulls should have to live with this stigma.
We talk daily about the struggles of racism, and how one bad group of muslims has made our nation afraid and hateful towards all muslims, or how one hateful police officer killed a black man and how that makes all white officers hateful towards people whom are black. But none of this is true, and there are people everywhere trying to raise awareness for that. So why not this?
Help us get justice for Mr. Brown by signing this petition to hold the police officer who shot and killed him accountable for his actions. By signing this, you would not only be helping a grieving family for the loss of their beloved pet, but helping a group of people looking to normalize societies view of pit bulls by leading them a step in the right direction.
PLEASE DON'T FORGET TO SIGN THE PETITION HERE :
http://donotshoot.us/12536-stop-police-violence-against-pit-bulls-justice-for-mr-brown/
