Initially when the thought ran across my mind to address “The issue at Hand”, I was speaking of Corona virus aka covid-19. But then it happened again. Another black life was tooken by the hands of a police officer. Or should I say by his knee….or better yet as delicately as the media puts it, “He succumbed to his injuries”. George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police after being pinned to the ground by an officer using excessive force by placing his knee on Floyd’s neck cutting off his airway. Horrible right. Disgusting is what jumped in my head first. What kind of a world are we living in where you can be scrolling social media and watch a murder. A cold blood murder by law enforcement. As much as that sadden me we had another issue.
I mentioned in my first blog im from Michigan. To be more specific, I’m from a small town named Ypsilanti. For my unfamiliar followers its about 30 minutes outside the city Detroit. Anywho…police brutality had hit home. Now let me be clear. I do not know all the details but I know enough to speak on it. Again as they sugar coated it….”A white sheriff’s deputy is under investigation after he was caught on camera allegedly punching a black woman in the head in Michigan”. I laugh every time I read that. That word allegedly means to be “used to convey that something is claimed to the case or had have taken place, although there is no proof”. How can they use the word allegedly and say he was caught on camera . WE ALL SAW IT!! Just like we saw George Floyd take his last breath. We heard Trayvon Martin on the tape screaming for his life. We seen Sandra Bland hang lifeless in a jail cell. We saw Ahmaud Arbery gunned down just for jogging. This is just to name a few. In 2015 more than 100 unarmed black men were killed by police. Unarmed meaning besides being black they weren’t a threat.
The messed up thing is, its the black community that’s out here protesting for justice. Something that is supposed to be amongst us from birth. All we want is respect as people. Again we are screaming and begging for our kind to be respected as people….we can’t even get that.
The question that won’t escape my mind is, what is it going to to take to truly stop the issue at hand. Racism. Here goes another quick vocabulary lesson. Racism is “Prejudice, discrimination or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.” I gotta break these things down so that we all on the same page. Black people are not viewed as equal. Some don’t even see us as humans. Other races, particularly whites, view their race as being far more superior than blacks. We can be president of the United States and still be subjected to being called a dumb nigga. We been fighting for years just to be seen as equal. How do we change this? Can we change this? Will it ever go away? When I was a kid I truly thought it would. The older I get I realize that not only will it never go away, it seems to be no cure. We literally have to fight for justice even though our pledge of allegiance says “Justice for all”. I feel like I have been hoodwinked. How dare you in bed those words in my head, make me recite it daily, but yet it doesn’t apply to me. One nation…yeah right. Under God, a God that many don’t believe in. Indivisible, we are not supposed to be divided or separated but we are. With liberty and justice for ALL. Liberty, “The state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one’s way of life, behavior, or political views”. Need I say more. Justice. “Just behavior or treatment”. It’s clear and evident this does not apply to blacks. If it does they sure have a funny way of showing it. Justice simply means to have a genuine concern for peace and respect for people.
Huh….so again I ask…what are we to do? Do we keep marching, protesting, and dying? I don’t jave the answers but I won’t stop looking either. until the issue at hand dies or I die first, I will continue to shout “Black Lives Matter” and demand justice for my people. I will continue to use my platform and be another voice for my people. In the mean time….How do we really address The Issue at Hand??
Mashira T...Thee Blogger 
“The Issue” makes my heart heavy, but the discussion is necessary. During this racially charged time what stands out is that we are not fighting for equality. We haven’t even gotten that far yet…we are fighting first to just be seen as human. Women, the LGBT community, etc. are fighting for equal rights whereas African Americans are fighting for civil rights…still! Those are basic human rights that should apply to everyone.
I don’t think there is one answer. We argue about the right way, when in reality none of the ways have entirely worked. Just as the attack on us is on many fronts, so must our response be. We have to hear from God as to what our role will be, because there is something for everyone to do. From protesting, writing public officials, praying, voting, being a positive example in the community, petitioning for change when necessary…we need to be present and visible on every level. One thing for certain is that we need to organize, come up with strategies and move forward. Another thing is we need to get in position. Every position our oppressors are in, so should we be. We need to be in the political arena, judges (local all the way to the Supreme Court), educators, attorneys, physicians, bankers, business owners of all kind, land owners, etc. We need be intentional in supporting and building our communities. We have to stay focused and see things all the way through, not be so short-sighted. We need to be accountable ourselves and hold those accountable that are in positions of power and leadership.
Having the difficult conversations is the first step and I appreciate you for doing it.
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