It seems like everywhere we turn, our world and country are constantly filling the news with stories of different tragedies and horrific events. There are mass shootings, senseless acts of murder, protests, corruption, bloodshed, pain, anger, hate, malice and so much more. While everyone has something to say as they share their own opinions, it sometimes can seem like there is no solid action being taken to truly change our world and move toward a more peaceful nation.

Sure, there are protests. Lots of them. So many people are upset. There are protests in Minnesota filling the streets, freeways and highways. People are taking a stand and while they certainly have the right to protest, does it really get us anywhere when we close down traffic? Highways are being closed down in the process, and our police officers' lives are violently being threatened while trying to maintain a safe community. I understand people are angry, but does this protesting really change anything?

Yes, the protests gain media attention on certain issues and lets people know there are some extreme issues within our country, but does it create a lot of changing when the government seems reluctant to even pay attention to these protesters' demands? Recent protests that have been filling the news are by no means peaceful and are causing a lot of harm to our cities and police departments. If people want to truly change something and see a difference, why aren't they getting involved more directly with an organization that can make a solid impact?

I am all for freedom of speech and the right for individuals to protest different causes and issues; however, it's when we can no longer protest without including violence and dangerous measurements that I think there's an issue.

Protesting may temporarily solve issues and ease the pain, but it doesn't always truly get to the heart of the problem. A quote that I strongly agree with in regards to the issues of protesting from an article published on Huffington Post by Najite Phoenix said:

If each of the thousands or even millions of people taking part in these protests decided to educate themselves on the structure of society, understand basic psychology, exercise sociological imagination and acknowledge the painful truth that many of the day to day activities that we take for granted are actually contributing to the world’s problems - maybe then we will start to see the change that we so desperately envisage. I feel that real change will only begin to occur when we refrain from the urge to become a part-time activist that sinks back into a passive everyday mindset as soon as the ‘hype’ dies down.

Our world needs a reset, a wake up call. We need to take our pain, anger, passion and motivation and direct it to making a difference within our communities, cities and world. The actions that are currently being taken, including protesting, seem to most of the time be nothing more than a social change allowing people to make others know of their passionate anger and pain.

I definitely understand the intensity of some people's emotions and pain that drives them to protest, and my heart goes out for these certain causes and things happening in our world; however, I do believe that in some cases where there's violent protesting, we need to find stronger alternatives we can donate our time and resources to as the answer. We need to find a way to channel this energy into a structured, impactful way that will really make lasting a difference to positively affect generations to come. Let's not just stand in freeways and close down traffic to let people know of the issues of this world; let's get behind something and do something more.