by Julia Genkinger
inspired by Marta A. O’Brien’s mini-lesson
| Black Lives Matter. Yes, all lives matter but they cannot all matter until Black Lives Matter. Black Lives. Have been oppressed for 250 years. Your ancestors have created the ghettos we lived in. Your media has painted the black man as violent, the black woman as crazy. If you are not helping us You are part of the problem. It’s more than one or two bad apples. It’s many police officers throughout these departments that choose to ignore and incite racism in one another. One rotten apple spoils the bunch. Just as teachers have to start each HOUR fresh with a student, police officers have to start each interaction with a fresh, clean state. We are scared. We are not equipped to deal with this. We want to feel safe and loved. We want all lives to matter. But all lives cannot matter until Black Lives Matter. We remain divided. My house is on fire. Please help us. | All Lives Matter. All Lives Matter. You’re isolating yourselves. We aren’t racist, we just care about All Lives. I don’t see what the problem is. People don’t get beaten in my town. We have lots of black cops. Heck, my neighbor is black! Most of these cops aren’t that bad. You can’t get mad about one or two bad apples. One rotten apple spoils the bunch. Black people run and frequently respond to cops with violence. Maybe that’s why they’re so defensive. Black people are repeat offenders. Cops are scared. They deal with criminals all day never knowing when someone could try to harm them. We are not equipped to deal with this. We want to feel safe and loved. We want all lives to matter. But all lives cannot matter until Cop Lives Matter. Why can’t we be united? Why are we so separated? The world is on fire. Please help us. |