Do not blame people who shout "Black Lives Matter." Do not blame police officers. Do not blame the president. The violence that has happened does not speak for the many, so a broad brush should not be used to paint portraits. But, that being said, there is a responsibility that we all have.
The recent murders of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile do not look good; and to me they do not seem justified. Those officers used their authority in an incorrect way, and it ended in death. Selling CDs should not end in death. Taking out your license should not end in death.
Now I guarantee that many reading those two previous sentences thought that the men who were murdered should have acted differently. That is where I have a problem. See, police officers are perceived to be free of prejudice and hate, and that goes for every officer.
But officers are people just like any of us and are prone to have characteristics that can be attributed to any person -- that includes hate, prejudice and the ability to be racist. A badge does not change this because, when that badge comes off, they are normal citizens. If you feel that police officers can do no wrong, you need to listen to stories with an open mind and open heart.
There were murders of individuals who did not deserve to die, and everyone needs to know that. Do not hesitate to think of an argument about how Sterling and Castile should have acted because they did nothing to deserve death. They did not pose a threat to the officers. Officers need to diffuse a situation, not escalate it.
In Louisiana, the situation was escalated, and same goes for what happened in Minnesota. Police should not be afraid of a black man legally carrying a gun because that is the constitutional right we were told we have just two weeks ago. I shout "Black Lives Matter" because those men did nothing in those situations to deserve to die, and there was no reason for the officers to escalate the situation.
On the "other" side of this "war" is being pro-police. Again, the few should not represent the many. As the son of a retired officer, I feel for those families and commend the officers who sacrificed their lives for the people at the protest. I pray for the families of the officers. What the shooter did was wrong. These officers did not deserve to die at such violent hands.
What this man did was unforgivable because violence should not be solved with violence. I can guarantee that the protesters in the black lives matter movement do not want this as a solution. The meaning behind black lives matter is to want the equal treatment of black citizens in our country, by society and by the institution. They do not call for the murder of police officers (go on the website).
I believe police officers do protect and serve the country in a positive way, and you can see that with the officers who actually agree with the protesters and are responsible by knowing three officers we see on videos are wrong. From all this, I am also pro-police.
There is no war going in between these two groups. In fact, the two should work together to try and make relations in this country better. We should all be shouting black lives matter, and we should be respecting police officers for the sacrifice they make.
Instead of saying "not all cops are bad," admit that there are bad police officers and that sometimes the actions of officers are wrong. Same goes for citizens because the murder of a police officer is not the answer. If we stopped pitting these two groups against each other, we'd understand that these two can work in harmony.
Calling out the violence some police officers disproportionately do against African Americans does not mean you are against cops, and understanding the dangers police officers are in every day of their lives does not mean you are against black people. Feel empathy for both of these groups, because each has millions of stories that will help everyone understand the struggle that is in our country.
