I wanted to write about something fun or uplifting this week, but each day of new news stories made that goal more and more impossible.
Just this past week, the Shia shrine attack killed dozens in Iraq, a bombing in Bahgdad had a death toll of 281, fighting broke out in South Sudan, and police "death squads" in Kenya caused outrage in their country. Wars are still being fought overseas and innocent lives are being lost as refugees try to escape to countries where they will feel safer. While terrorist attacks aren't happening on our soil right now, they're happening in a lot of other places in our world. The bombing in Bahgdad was worse than the shooting in Orlando, and the media barely talked about it. I had to go to foreign news outlets to learn more about it.
The media seems to judge whose lives to broadcast when it comes to mass tragedies. We learned a lot more about Paris than we ever will learn about Bahgdad. Why? If the argument is that we focus on what goes on in the Unites States, then why did Paris get all the attention? The media is a huge influence in shaping people's views of the world-we can't be lead to believe that lives in Paris were more precious than lives in Bahgdad. I'll remind you that the victims in both tragedies were innocent.
There is so much hate in the world. In Orlando. In Bahgdad. In Iraq. In Paris. In Kenya. All these tragedies are subtle reminders that life is precious. Every life matters, and actions need to be taken to protect them from harm.
On our own soil, we are dealing with hate in forms other than terrorism. Police brutality is still all over the news, and fights are breaking out over #BlackLivesMatter and #AllLivesMatter.
Almost two years ago, in October of 2014, I walked with other college students in Worcester in solidarity with the people of Ferguson. We walked in protest of police officers who were not indited after involvement in the unnecessary murder of black men. We held signs that said "HANDS UP, DON'T SHOOT" and "Worcester to Ferguson." We chanted "No justice, no peace" and stood in front of city hall to send a message to our city leaders that they should do something to prevent police brutality.
Since then, we have seen protest after protest after protest and still, black men and women are dying in the hands of police-people who are supposed to protect us. This problem disproportionately affects men and women of color, but it happens to people of all races. Still, actions to prevent deaths at the hands of police have not been done.
A few years ago, Las Vegas noticed that there were a large number of cases of police brutality. The Police Department got together, acknowledged that there was a problem, and tried to fix it. They re-trained officers and faced the problem. Cases of police brutality have decreased 31 percent since then. It's not a perfect number, but at least they're doing something.
This can't be said for the rest of the nation. Ever since Ferguson, more people have protested and spoken out about police brutality. We have seen the heartbroken family members, crying children, and outraged citizens on television. We have seen the news coverage, the failures to bring cases to trial, the speeches from the President.
In a recent speech, President Obama clarified the need for the Black Lives Matter movement. He said "When people say 'Black Lives Matter' that doesn't mean Blue Lives don't matter. It just means All Lives Matter but right now the big concern is the fact that the data shows black folks are more vulnerable to these kinds of incidences. This isn't a matter of us comparing the value of lives; there is a particular burden that is being placed on a group of our fellow citizens. You can't dismiss it."
When it comes to improving the relationship between police officers and the community, respect has to go both ways. Police Officers need to be the ones to initiate change. A few towns away from me is the city of Lynn. Police Officers are not usually seen in a good light and they don't seem to be involved in the community. You rarely see them patrolling the city or talking to the citizens. On the 4th of July I saw some of them with bracelets and stickers, handing them out to children and walking among the people. We need more of this kind of communication. The police can't be the people who come around only when there is an imminent problem. They need to foster a positive relationship with the communities they swore to protect.
Peaceful protest, and even forceful protest without the intent to harm people or property are ways that people can make their voices heard and reach out to the police force. Recently, protests in Dallas got way out of hand. After the deaths of a black man in Baton Rouge and a second black man in Falcon Heights, protest broke out in Dallas. All was fine until someone shot at police officers. Now 5 officers are dead and 6 more were shot. Fighting violence with violence is not the answer.
Police officers shake their heads at protestors, but what if they joined in? It isn't all police officers who are in trouble, and the ones who do their jobs the right way need to support the people protesting. Systematic change has to happen, because the problem of police brutality is a systematic problem that needs to change. We need to do something to prevent the loss of more innocent lives. It has to start with the police force. Peace and respect must be reciprocated.
This is for those whose lives could have been spared. This is for those whose lives should have been spared. Michael Brown. Trayvon Martin. Eric Garner. John Crawford. Ezell Ford. Dante Parker. Tanisha Anderson. Akai Gurley. Tamir Rice. Rumain Brisbon. Jerome Reid. Tony Robinson. Phillip White. Eric Harris. Walter Scott. Freddie Gray. Jamar Clark. Bettie Jones. Kevin Matthews. Philando Castile. Alton Sterling. 136 men and women that have been killed by police so far in 2016. Officers Michael Smith, Michael Krol, Patrick Zamarippa, Brent Thompson, and Lorne Ahrens. Maybe someday the system that caused your deaths will be improved upon. Rest in peace and may this generation practice the love that is so needed in our lives.
