Summer has been a whirlwind for me with school, work and
everything in between. I have seen the news and cringed, but went about my day.
In recent crisis I decided I could no longer sit in silence. Human beings are
being slaughtered carelessly. Our nation needs to come together and have
compassion for one another.
This is a face of a daughter of a retired police officer and
a current correctional officer. Each day my father and mother go to work not
knowing if they will return home. Between the two of them they have sacrificed
45 plus years to serving their communities. As a little girl I would get up in
the morning and run to the window. I would watch my dad walk to work and pray
it was not his last day. When he came home from lunch I would be relieved that
he was still alive. Thinking to myself that he just had to get through 4 more
hours and I could have my daddy back. Every morning my mom walks out the door
knowing it could very well be her last. She deals with some of the roughest
people day in and day out. While they
both know their jobs are dangerous, they continue to serve and protect people.
This is a face an aunt who has a nephew and three nieces who
are African Americans. My fear as they will grow up with the notion to not trust
officers who often live to protect them. While I don’t know the African
American perspective, I do know I want my babies to be safe. I do not want them
growing up in fear just to go to a gas station just because of their skin color. I want them to have every opportunity to live
their life without fear.
Now our nation is continuously blasted with news and social
media posts, but who honestly has the true story? Everyone begins to jump to
conclusions when the only people who have an idea of what occurred, were the
people involved. This continuous problem of careless shootings needs to end. I
am not saying I stand behind officers or I stand behind African American. I
stand behind the human race. Every person who has been involved is someone’s
son, daughter, mother or father. They are humans who deserve the chance to
live, no matter what they did or did not do.
I believe that if the person who is being apprehended is wrong, they
should serve the punishment. If the officer who is doing the apprehending is in
the wrong, they should serve the punishment.
I know this may sound like a broken record, but good officers
do exist. My parents happen to be people with two of the biggest hearts I know. Unfortunately,
the media shows you the crooked cops. In
every job there are going to be people who may not be in the right career path.
Now we may have different opinions on this topic, but I ask
when you lay down at night, you pray for every officer protecting you as well
as your brothers and sisters in Christ.
God calls us to love each other, not to senselessly kill each other.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not
be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you
wherever you go.
Lots of Love,
