In Response To Stop Making The Las Vegas Tragedy A Political Debate,
Whether you like it or not, Emily, politics is the center of American society. It is not only legislation about how we interact with other countries and what economic decisions we make for ourselves, but it is also how we protect our rights as Americans and deal with social injustice.
It is deeply ingrained in how we view each other as Americans; whether it be race, orientation, or economic disposition, every part of our demographics is political. We go through politics to bring attention to our societal problems because nothing else works. We have created a highly political society based on polarized political views and there is nothing we can do about it.
To take this stance you have that the tragedies in the past few weeks are not political is to use your white privilege and its ability to negate the problems of others less fortunate. The mass shooting in Las Vegas is highly political because it demands the government look directly in the face of gun control and domestic terrorism at the hands of white males.
Regardless of race, the idea that a regular citizen could obtain 47 guns, taking 23 of them into a luxury hotel, and not receive any suspicion goes to show how our gun laws are just simply too lax.
Addressing race, 116 attacks since 2008 were from white supremacists and other right-wing extremists. This nearly doubles the 63 cases that Islamist extremists performed.
Yet, every time a white male becomes a terrorist, he is not depicted as such. He is known for his gentleness, the kind acts he performed throughout his life, and who he will be remembered by.
He is not even called a terrorist. This speaks to the idea that white males have a controlling hand in politics, and it seeps through every aspect of every American’s lives, to the point where America does not address the fact that domestic terrorism is a white male issue.
The ongoing tragedy in Puerto Rico is completely and entirely political, and to say that it is not is to yet again call on your white privilege.
The reason that the tragedy was so bad was that those in high power in politics refused to acknowledge it as a valid use of funds and resources.
The Trump administration labeled the tragedy as more an unnecessary charity event as if Puerto Ricans were not American.
With every two-sided comment about the tragedy, whether it was about the debt Puerto Rico owed to Wall Street or the mayor somehow not doing enough, he created the idea that it was not an urgent matter.
He created the idea that brown people are second-class when it comes to saving their lives.
Believing the fact that race had nothing to do with the suffering in Puerto Rico is much of the problem in America at this point, Emily. Wanting to focus on God and erasing politics from everything will not stop things like this from happening.
It furthers an idea similar to “color-blindness”, the rhetoric that if you do not see color, racism will not prevail.
If you do not address the implications of tragedies, they will not go away. Pushing the agenda that politics does not influence the way people think, the way they act, and they way hurt will not better society as it is.
We live in a society deeply entrenched in the anguish of slavery, racism, and economic disenfranchisement, and it all comes from institutions of legislation and specific political intentions.
Although you may not realize it because of your white privilege, many of the things that happen in today’s news stem from these political institutions.
So, saying politics has nothing to do with it shows that “you are becoming numb to humankind” (as you say), and not paying attention to the world around you.
God may be the ultimate salvation, but while you are on this earth, in this country, you cannot avoid politics and how they affect people more than you will ever know.