We are currently almost in the sixth month of 2020 and are now going on about the fourth month of being in quarantine and the state of America has never been at such a vulnerable state.
From pandemics, protests, racial profiling and murders of many black people we can stand firm on how this year has not been anything worth celebrating as we did back in the beginning of January. America has and will always be a complicated chunk of the world. There are so many issues that occur in this country more than any other, so many things that are out of my and my peers hands. We are only the ones who have inherited the "Land of the Free" and all the unjust things that come with it. While this notion never stops us from doing all in our power to not only be aware but to be in the front line of change, we have to address that America has a pretty rotten core.
We've all been in the history class and learned about people and events that we think have nothing to do with our lives today. That same horrible past has always been there just dressed in sheep's clothing. The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and many other black and brown people are very real and present examples that not much has changed in America. While it isn't outright racism like in the 1950s or the murdering of a slave, it is equally as horrifying to know that we live in a country were acts such as these can go on without much of any punishment. We have seen it time and time again police officers, citizens making "citizen's arrest" or "standing their ground" get off on murder charges.
This issue shows just how bad America is. Any person who knows right from wrong and has seen the countless videos of black lives being snatched away far too soon at the hands of those intended to protect them. To make matters even worse black people are prompted to forget about the current pandemic going on in order to fight the epidemic of racism in America. It is disheartening and yanks away any hope any minority community especially the black community, can have in a system that has yet to make the necessary changes.
At the core of the issue, beyond police training and policies that need to be changed, is and will always be racism. Until Americans can come to terms that this social practice is embedded in our country, we won't see much change. Once we really address it and those who claim to just not be racist become anti-racist, black lives will be at risk every single day. We have to do better as a country and 2020 is showing exactly how much better we need to do.
Sheetal Tadiparty
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