It Starts With Us

This week.

Murder, sniping, brutality, death, screaming, chaos, marching, filming, protesting...

Dying.

Mothers and girlfriends pleading for it to stop,

Children texting daddies in uniform and not

Begging them to be safe and just come home.

Our communal life is a war some deny is being waged,

With some deemed "good" and some deemed "bad",

Often deemed both, depending upon the declarer.

All police are not corrupt,

All black men are not dangerous.

All are human.

Social media explodes with questions, accusations, and fears on display.

Everyone asking, when will it stop?  Why is this happening?

What can we do?

Simple.  It starts with us, yes, you and me.

It starts with us raising children so they see the humanity in all, even if others are different...

Different race, different class, different loves.

It starts with us, as we don't hold in our correction of those who speak ill of others,

Who prefer to categorize, generalize, and classify.

We need to say, "No, not in my presence...human is human."

It starts with us, vigorously and vehemently fighting for the rights of ALL people,

Not just those who looks most like us, not just those who act most like us.

All are worthy of dignity, of justice, of equity.

It starts with us, confronting our own biases

As we avoid talking with those whose lives are different

Or mumble undeserved epithets as we pass by.

It starts with us, it starts with you, and me, and ours.

We can't stop reaching out, we can't avoid it any longer.

Or chaos is our just reward.

Gentle words, gentle hands, gentle hearts...

This is what the world needs, always.