These past few months have tested our moral values as it pertains to social progress. We have worked on diagnosing the problems that members from our communities face on a regular basis and have attached those narratives to our own set of values.
This approach has resulted in competing voices as people express their opinions about what should happen when faced with death and other extreme situations. We do this far from establishing a foundation of empathy, a dangerous way to deal with humanity.
Minorities, women, homosexuals, elders, the handicapped and other groups that historically have been placed on the margin of socio-political power depend on protest and calling out injustices in order to ensure social progress. So, the recent outpour of the discontent should be embraced as an opportunity to reach consensus on issues that have long kept certain people at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder and forced to continuously engage with law enforcement officers who have sworn to the protect and serve.
It is no mystery that a significant portion of those encounters have resulted in police brutality, mistrust and the other shittiness that usually accompanies a dysfunctional relationship. Along with this relationship, the criminal justice system that it belongs to is undoubtedly fucked up.
From the prosecution to the war on drugs to the private prison complex, multiple layers of this system has disproportionately impacted men of color. This notion is empirically supported and accepted among the professionals who extensively study the system itself.
It is important we accept the fact that lady liberty’s scale tilts away from certain people which has resulted in destructive outcomes that at times can be described as inhumane. Once we accept this as truth, we will feel the desperation that comes with such oppressive practices and empathize with a community that has experienced unpaid labor, restricted voting, ineffective education, and violence.
Again, these are well-established facts. With empathy, we'll be able to build the courage to accept responsibility and then do something about it. To help decide why and how to do “something,” look at history.
