Pose: MovemenT ForM - Pose Shut Up
So it took me a few days to be able to sit here and write this post. I apologize ahead of time because it will be all over the place and just a list of things that are on my mind. I am angry, I am sad, I am scared, and most of all I am tired.
The idea of being in a country where you are killed by those whose job it is to protect you is sickening. The mistrust and fear of those who are supposed to protect you is not OK. Having to worry anytime you or someone you love goes out of the house that they will not come back to you is not OK. But we can and we will change this. We can and we will break down systematic racism. It cannot just be black people, or just white people, but as a human race we must want to change. I really would like to believe that one day, we will not have to worry about a system that was never designed for us. It is our constitutional right to change what we do not like.
It seems for awhile we have come so far just to take 10 steps back. We are "given" the same rights as anyone else, until we do it. They tell us to protest peacefully, and blackball us from a whole league just for kneeling. They tell us not to riot, but riot to celebrate, or mourn a loss. A loss of a game. Not the lose of a person. They tell us #AllLivesMatter or #BlueLivesMatter but then try to silence #BlackLivesMatter. How do all lives matter if we do not matter? Remember to use these rights, spend money where it should be spent. VOTE VOTE VOTE. Vote not just in the presidential election, but the Senate, the House, the governor, local elections, etc. Encourage our children to go into politics, and become police officers, and doctors, and nurses, and lawyers. Encourage our children to have a voice to make a difference.
I'd also like the time in this very unorganized post of my thoughts to thank those who stand with us. Thank you to those who do not share our struggles and who cannot fathom what we go for but stand for us. We have to remember these people exist and acknowledge them before we acknowledge those who do not like us. Those who do not support us.
For this week (last week I guess) to start with a lady crying on the phone because a black man told her to leash her dog, to watching another black man die in the hands of the police, was a lot to take in. There were so many hashtags this year, but there were also people who died that we do not know about. Social media is a blessing and a curse for us and we need to mobilize and do it right.
Take note in who supports you. Take note of who is silent. Take note of those who are against you and your feelings. Rally support around those who support you. There are many companies, influencers, and celebrities who do! Shop from them, acknowledge them, etc. For everyone else (sorry for my language) fuck them. Do not give them your money, do not give them your time, and do not give them any interaction!! These people make money from who interacts with their post so DO NOT VIEW, LIKE, COMMENT, REPOST, ETC).
And finally. Please remember we are still in a pandemic. If you are going to protest, please do so. But please be safe! Wear your face covering, stay home if you are sick. We have to get through this pandemic just as much as we have to get our voice heard. If you are sick, write letters to your police chief, your senators, your mayors, anyone and everyone. Tell them you are angry, demand change.
Please be safe.
#BlackLivesMatter
