#22 calliber

The death of George Floyd is something that cannot be ignored, forgotten, or taken lightly. This should not have happened. Many people might disagree, but it’s time for everyone to wake up and realize that racism does exist and this situation is direct proof of that. An unarmed, innocent black man was murdered in cold blood by someone who was sworn to protect him. He wasn’t resisting arrest. He wasn’t doing anything against the law. The only thing he did, was be black. And this isn’t the first time this has happened. It’s not the second, third, fourth, fifth, time this has happened. And the murder of innocent people of color will continue to happen until we stop making excuses and start being accountable. The first step to fixing a problem is realizing that there is one.

I am not black. Obviously. In fact, I’m half Latina. But because my skin looks white, I have the light hair and light eyes, I will never really know the struggles and the fear that people of color face in this country every single day. I understand that I will never understand. But I’m learning that white privilege is definitely a thing, whether or not white people acknowledge, realize, or use it. It’s there, despite the denial and refusal accept it. Peak white privilege is being able to deny that white privilege exists. That isn’t to say that white peoples’ lives can’t be hard. But the color of their skin isn’t one of the things that makes it hard. And because I look white, I have certain advantages afforded to me that people of color simply don’t have. That’s the reality. And even though I don’t understand and I’ve never experienced it, the fact that people of color are targeted and discriminated against on the basis of their skin tone is their reality. And that’s not fair to them. And it is not my place to invalidate their experiences and their reality simply because I’ve never personally experienced it and it isn’t my reality.

I used to be one of those people that said “all lives matter.” I didn’t realize until recently how unhelpful and ignorant it is to have that mentality. Obviously all lives matter and have value. Duh. Any decent person believes that. But not all lives are in jeopardy because of the color their skin. And if you truly believe that all lives matter, then you should have no problem saying that black lives matter and acknowledge their plight. Think how weird it would be if you repeatedly said, “I like all vegetables,” but then refused to say, “I like carrots,” then got all pissed off whenever people asked you if you like carrots. When there are systemic injustices that more specifically effect one group more than another, that’s why that group is singled out. It doesn’t mean that other groups don’t matter or that we’re putting one group above another. But what you’re doing when you say that is you’re erasing and overlooking the struggles of the other group. So I’m here to say that I believe that BLACK LIVES MATTER. George Floyd’s life mattered. He couldn’t breathe. It’s a wonder that any people of color can breathe with the knee of injustice bearing down on all their necks. It needs to stop. They are suffocating and being asphyxiated by the very system that is supposed to protect them. No, I’m not black. But I love, support, and stand with my black brothers and sisters no matter who they are or where they’re from.

Some people are going to disagree with this. Some of my friends and maybe even some family members are going to try to convince my that I’m wrong and naive. But I don’t care. Speaking out against race-based violence is not anti-white, anti-police, right, or left. It makes you pro-Justice, pro-black life, pro-accountability, and pro-racial equality. Caring about the life of another isn’t political. It’s human. And to those of you who refuse to believe and acknowledge that there is problem, congratulations—you’re contributing to the problem. It’s time to do some self-reflection.