Dear Stranger,
I see your facebook posts everyday stating how horrified you are for humanity and how unfortunate it is that black men and police officers are dying. I agree with you because it truly is horrifying to see so many people dead and to think that their families are mourning the death of someone they love. As I keep scrolling down I see the in big bold letters “#ALLLIVESMATTER” and I understand why you have that instead of ‘#BlackLivesMatter.’
If you put #AllLivesMatter then you are openly acknowledging every death that has happened recently and that makes you politically correct. You also want to avoid race in your Facebook status because race is a touchy subject that everyone seems sensitive to right now. But here’s why I think you should be promoting #BlackLivesMatter.
We know that all lives matter. We are aware of the value of human life and it’s horrifying to know that people can kill one another in cold blood. Race, gender, sexuality, religion, or nationality does not justify killing one another but at this very moment it is.
Black men are being killed because of ‘negrophobia.’ They are being bullied, harassed and looked down upon by the people around them and are constant victims of racial profiling. Black Americans are supposed to be free according to our constitution but are they really free if they are being dehumanized every day of their lives?
Black Lives Matter needs to be promoted because not every parent is afraid for their child’s life because of their skin color. It’s only Black Americans. They are required to tell their children that if they are stopped by the police that they should not do anything except comply so that their children can return home safely. I call this talk the “Comply, Don’t Die” talk— but recently we’ve seen that even complying doesn’t stop their children from being killed.
We need to promote black lives matter because Black Americans don’t see that their lives are worth anything anymore and they are starting to realize that. They’re angry because their sons are being shot and killed for complying and they are tired of being treated like second class citizens.
Black Americans are angry because police officers are not being acquitted for their crimes and they are not getting justice for the wrong that have been done. They have years of anger stored inside them from the senseless violence and dehumanization that they have experienced since slavery. They are tired of being treated like their lives don’t matter.
I’d like to reiterate that we are aware that all lives matter but all lives are not being respected. If all lives mattered then Black Americans would not be shot and killed like they have no value to their lives. Black parents should not have to have the “Comply, Don’t Die” talk. If all lives truly matter then why are we making documentaries and videos respecting the police officers and sharing their stories but only displaying the criminal records of the black men that have died?
An uprising is imminent because black men need to restore the value to their lives and feel safe. They want the rights that every citizen is promised that they have not received. We need to help start this uprising by reminding black Americans that Black Lives Matter and that they are worth something, so that the violence and deaths can end.
