This is so hypocritical. Am i white? Yes. Do I understand the struggle of the African Americans? Yes. I went to a 98% black school where I was the minority, i seen the struggle daily. I get it. I understand the #BlackLivesMatter movement and i support it. But I again believe All lives matter. Because they do. I dont say this because i am being belittling to the black community’s movement, i say it because this shit goes both ways. And posts like this show that exactly. Racism isnt just white against black. Rasicm is an issue that goes both ways and this post is belittling those of us that actually believe in the All lives Matter campaign. Because Black Lives are included in that All. And this post is just as racist as those that are white against black.
Everyone knows all lives matter, but all lives aren’t being taken in the streets by the same people sworn to protect those very lives.
We are not saying all lives don’t matter.
We are saying black lives matter too
Thank you Lynn for having this convo with me.
The post you linked is 100% correct. But here is the issue I have.
I have a real issue with the racism word because it is generally associated with the struggle of those who are of color being belittled by the white man, but the fact is, this is a two way street. I stand for not whites, but the human race. I was born to be blind to the color of skin or ethnicity of a person, and I am raising my children to do the same. But it’s hard to do that when the news is all about race, race, race. I understand the Black Lives Matter movement but this movement would’ve been better received had a large group of blacks protested with the words “All Lives Matter” rather than “Black Lives Matter”, it would’ve still made the same movement and point. To a child or to those of us that Believe whole-heartedly that eveyone should be equal regardless of skin color, sexual preference, or sex….This campaign seems a little one sided and feels as though they could be saying “We matter more.” So to say Black Lives Matter, maybe make it Black Lives Matter Too. So it’s easier for me to raise my children in a world where racism doesn’t seem so split. It’s black against white with words like “Black Lives Matter” rather than “All Lives Matter” Or “Our Lives Matter Too” or “Black Lives Matter Too” (In which you stated)
I know this is probably going to be received as the “white girl bitching about blacks ruining the world” by those that want to read it that way but that is not how I am intending it to come across. But here is the thing I’m trying to say, I have a bunch of friends from school who are black and we always amazingly got along well in school, yet if I say one thing about what’s going on (Which I am Pro-police because I have close friends and family who are officers) I get told I’m wrong to think that way, and I don’t get it because I’m white. <<That right there is racism. It goes both ways. I in no way think I am better than those that have skin of a different color. So when I say “#All Lives Matter” It isn’t a matter of me belittling the campaign, it’s a matter of stopping the segregation.
And as for the statement saying all lives haven’t been taken in the streets, the Dallas shooting shows there is. I understand that the shooters were not protesters but that is still lives lost because of racism. Are most of the wrongful police action taken on blacks? Yes. But they aren’t the only ones. All lives are affected. (X, X) This is a fight all of us should be fighting for….. Brutality by Police. I have a lot of friends and family who are police officers and don’t abuse their rights as officers. But from knowing so much about law enforcement, I know that they go through tests but probably not nearly enough. Did you know it only takes 9 months or less to become a police officer? Did you know they have to go through psych evaluations and lie detector tests before they can graduate and again before they are employed by a department? But do you know the questions they don’t ask but SHOULD ask?
Have you ever made a joke about another race? Do people of other race make you nervous?Do you hate people of other race? Do you believe you are better than people that are a different race than yourself?
Will this end white on black unlawful police activity? I don’t know and I can’t guarantee that. But we’ve gotta start somewhere. I said it all in this post >> Here << But the fact of the matter is that there are lives being taken EVERYWHERE. by EVERYONE, of EVERY RACE. And it’s just gotta stop, all of it.
I’m going to start by asking very respectfully for you to never again say that you are blind to color. It doesn’t come across the way people think it does. We don’t want anyone to be blind to our color. We are black, and to say that you don’t see that is to say that you don’t see us. It demeans the struggle we are fighting and have been fighting for hundreds of years, and it gives the implication that “white is good, color is bad, I like you, so you have no color.” We want to be seen as black, we just want to be treated fairly at the same time.
And yes, the Black Lives Matter movement probably would be more well received if it was more inclusive, but we don’t want kind reception we want respect and at the risk of sounding rude, which I really don’t mean to, we don’t care who receives it well and who doesn’t. It’s not about anyone else, it is about us. It is not our responsibility to include people in things they know nothing of, because let’s be frank, white people do not and never will have any clue as to what it’s like to be black in America. It is one thing to watch it happen on the news and internet, but it is another thing entirely to live it. We can’t turn it off when we’ve had enough. This is life. The upset and fear and hurt you feel right now is how we live our entire lives.
And no, we’re not going to add the “too” at the end because there is no way we should have to specify as the oppressed, what we mean we we say that our lives matter. Especially since we are the ones that have been being told that we are worth less than nothing since we were first brought here in chains.
The Black Lives Matter movement doesn’t include everyone else because it is not about everyone else, it is about us uniquely and our struggle, because however much you would like to believe that it’s a two way street systematic and institutional racism don’t work that way. It may hurt the feelings of white people to not be included but it won’t get them killed, or keep them from getting jobs, or into certain schools. They won’t be told their hair is unprofessional if they wear it the way it grows from their head, they won’t have strangers ask to touch random bits of them like some macabre form of a petting zoo, or be tried and persecuted before they ever see a judge.
And as far as your black friends disliking you being pro-police, that is not racism it’s prejudice. It has nothing to do with the color of anyone’s skin and everything to do with the fact they there are a great many of the boys in blue abusing their power and we have had enough. The bad ones kill us and the good ones refuse to speak out about the bad ones because they are more worried about job security than saving lives. Can you really blame us for not trusting a group of people who, as far back as American history can remember, has had their boots on our necks?
And I didn’t say all lives aren’t being taken in the streets, I said all lives aren’t begin taken in the streets by those sworn to protect those very same lives and that is a very important distinction. Do you understand what it’s like to live in a world where you have no protection? Where when bad things happen you can’t call the police because likely they will find a way to make it your fault? Where if you make even the smallest mistake it could mean your life? We have no one to call.
And yes, I did know. A very close friend of mine’s husband is a cop, and I was there the entire time while he went through the process, and I completely agree that it’s way too easy to become an officer. Officers are being held up to the standards the law sets and are being found severely lacking and that is a HUGE problem, but it’s not one we as black people have even the slightest chance of affecting. That, will have to come from within the force, because if history and recent years alike have told us anything it’s that black people aren’t heard unless we’re shouting from rooftops, and even then the only response we get is “shut up!”.
And no, I don’t make jokes about race, it’s disgusting and childish and not in the least bit funny. I do get a bit nervous around white people when I meet them for the first time, I won’t lie, but it’s usually because when I’m in the company of white people I don’t know I tend to immediately feel judged and looked down upon until I speak with them and can decide for myself what kind of person they are, and it sounds bad but it’s the life we have to live it we want to stay safe. Caution, constant vigilance, and unending awareness of our surroundings.
And yes, lots of people of all colors are being killed, but the difference is, there is a disproportionately large amount of people, cop and civilian alike, that walk free for killing black people. The world is being told that they can kill us without consequences, and so this is us, standing up and shouting that we are people, that we deserve better, and that our lives matter.
And if you can’t understand that, then, honestly, good. That means you haven’t lived through the things we have, and honestly, as much as I love my family, my people, my skin, and my race? I wouldn’t wish this kind of constant pain and fear and anxiety on anyone.
