Institutional bull....

Who am I to write about what it's like to be a police officer?  I'm not a police officer.

Who am I to write about what it's like to be a person of color?  I'm white.

Short answer, I'm no where near qualified enough to be writing anything earth shattering.

But in America today, we have a lot of frustrated at black people.  We have a lot of frustrated white people.  And we have a lot of police officers that are frustrated too.

I said something yesterday on Facebook that was a vast generalization and someone called me an asshat for saying it.  He was right, in the fact that doing that was an asshat thing to do.  But I am not an asshat.  And he knows it.  We have to be extremely careful not to judge the entirety of someones being one on act or word that comes from them.

I have no idea what it's like to be a cop.  Even though a video shows a cop performing a heinous act of violence.  I don't want to judge that cop on anything other than, they screwed up.  They shot someone.  They killed someone.  But you know what, I wasn't there.  I don't know the whole story.  As believable as a video can be.  What I do know is, someone is dead.  And they were killed by the people supposed to protect and serve all people.  So as easy it is to jump in and get mad at police, I can't to do that.  Not from the only things I see on the media.  But I can empathize with whats happening.

If you wonder why we have black communities,
look up racism in real estate. 

I have no idea what it's like to be a black person today.  I will never know first hand.  There are riots in Charlotte today over the shooting of a black man a few days ago.  It wasn't Terrance Crutcher's death that fueled this fire as much as it was the death of Keith Scott.  I don't know what exactly happened to Keith Scott.  Apparently he was holding a gun and didn't drop it when asked.  And from my understanding, Keith Scott didn't do anything to warrant being told to drop his gun.  And because he didn't, he got shot and killed by a police officer.  These are two of many deaths that happen every single day.

The riots aren't about Keith Scott.  Keith Scott's death merely pulled the trigger on a loaded gun of frustration that has been felt by the black community ever since...well....America has been here and long before that.

There is a thing called "Institutional Racism".  If you are unfamiliar with the term, you can read about it here.  I encourage you to do so.  It's awful. The way actions of our country...of our parents and grandparents, still effect the black community today.  From real estate to school systems to the way they are treated in the judicial system.  If you wonder why the riots are happening over a death of a man that supposedly had a gun and wouldn't comply with an officer request...click that link and read about why they are rioting.  See, it's not about the most recent shooting.  It's about the last few hundred years of being treated like a second class citizen.

There is a thing called "Diversity of Tactics".  You can learn about that here.  I've heard it said that riots are the voice of the unheard.  Imagine if finally someone in the spotlight took a stand for the unjust treatment of black people in America and instead of paying attention to the message of that person, people got upset about the peaceful way in which they did it?.  How frustrating that must be!  I can't imagine being the victim of years and years of oppression and racism and seeing people more upset over the peaceful tactics of the delivery of a message then the actual message itself.  I would get mad.  And I'd probably do and say things that aren't as peaceful.

Until Americans wake up and see that the people that are mad and rioting aren't thugs and looters but real people with real frustrations, nothing will change.  Stop looking in from the sidelines and get disgusted by the emotions.  Start feeling empathy and help get to the source of where the emotions come from.  This isn't a black people vs. police battle.  But that's how it's appearing.  And until we as white people who don't think we are affected step in and listen....nothing is going to happen.  I encourage all people who have even the slightest bit of frustration at the riots to really dive into the history of racism in our country.  If you find yourself at all judging those rioting as disrespectful and belligerent for no good reason...read about institutional racism and it won't take long to begin to understand.  Hell, just go talk to a black person.  Then go talk to another one.  Then another.  As many as it takes for you to understand.