That’s right, I said it: ALL lives matter, regardless of age, race, gender, sexuality, etc. You matter. Your life matters, and the value of your life should not be determined by your career, or your expendability, or the color of your skin.
Frankly, I am oh so very tired of hearing * insert race here * lives matter. And here’s why:
At the top of the list of reasons as to why singling out one specific race is an awful idea, the most prominent reason is this: the further we pull from each other based on race, the more we worsen the racial gap.
And while you may not think the racial gap is that wide or that important, it clearly is. It can be seen in the way people of African American, Hispanic, and other minorities make less than the "White Male" in nearly every profession. It is seen in the way we treat refugees and immigrants. It is seen in the type of neighborhoods that people of color live in, schools they send their children too and over-all stereotype they experience, versus that of white Americans. It can be seen, and even experienced depending on what side of the spectrum you’ve been born into.
There is a racial gap; it cannot be denied. Some (particularly those of color) feel it worse than others; that much will be acknowledged.
However, a person’s place in the spectrum DOES NOT determine the value of their life, and their skin color SHOULD NOT determine the value of their life.
That is not to say all of a certain race are innocent, and that all of another race are guilty, because that is simply not how life works. It should not be people of color versus white, or vice versa.
We are human, every single one of us, and we are flawed. We are people; there are bad people, and good people in every walk of life, and in every situation; and while you may be reading this thinking “Yes, I know that” what you might fail to remember is that one bad person from a specific race in a specific career DOES NOT represent the rest of that race.
The white person on the news, and his/her wrong-doing DOES NOT represent all white people.
The person of color on the news, and his/her wrong-doing DOES NOT represent all people of color.
The immigrant on the news, and his/her wrong-doing, DOES NOT represent all people of their race or immigration status.
And while this article may seem that I am writing in a way that is white versus color, it is not meant that way, it is meant to show how easy it is to become so segregated from one another based on assumptions and prejudices.
The media tends to pick sides, throw incorrect information and overly dramatize what we see. They use their control and viewing power to act like every single thing they report is the end of the world (makes for an interesting hook, right?), because who else would watch the news if they didn’t?
The bottom line is that what the media represents are a certain few extraordinary cases (which is why they warrant a place on a news broadcasting station, on national television), and while the parties involved may have been wrongly represented, wrongly punished, wrongly judged, or their story ended in fatality; it DOES NOT mean to be a representation of those from the same race, culture, etc.
The war on race from one to another needs to end because the simple fact is this; there are always going to be good people, and there are always going to be bad people, from every walk of life. Every race, culture, and profession will experience some of the good people, and some of the bad people as well. To make accusations, deny those people to the right of life by saying another race matters more than another, and treating each other unjustly BECAUSE of race, culture, immigration status, or profession is completely and utterly insane.
All lives matter. Every single one of us. It can be very hard not to be swayed by the media, and to not make snap judgements based on the actions of a small section of a race, culture or profession. But please try to remember that all lives matter; and the more we choose between race versus race over and over, it is not the media we will have to thank for widening the race gap, but ourselves.
Be kind, be understanding, and please try to put your prejudices aside to seepeople for who they are, not just the color of their skin.
