Don't Tell the Grieving Mother "All Lives Matter"

A knee-jerk reaction of privileged white supremacists to "Black Lives Matter" is a snarky "All Lives Matter." That response suggests they don't begin to understand the problem we have in this country with racism.   

First of all, the fact that we have to be reminded that black lives matter means for way too long and in far too many places black lives have not mattered. It should be obvious that black lives matter, but it is not obvious in a society in which a young black man has to take his daughter with him when walking in his suburban neighborhood. A strong young black man without his daughter will be perceived as a threat and someone will call the police to report a "suspicious character' in the neighborhood. And then when the police arrive, so many bad outcomes are likely.

That is exactly why we have to be reminded that black lives matter.

And don't tell me all lives matter. Of course, all lives matter, but that is not relevant to our situation in 2020. If your spouses' mother dies and your spouse is grieving, one does not console the other by saying "Everyone has to go sometime." The fact that we all die is not relevant. This particular death is the matter at hand. Deal with it, don't try to generalize it. 

Young black men and women in our society are being strangled and shot in the back at an alarming rate and we need to address that problem To the mother who has lost a child, do not say "All lives Matter." It is her particular young son who is lying on the slab in the morgue. Do not try to generalize that mother's grief. To generalize is to trivialize, and there is nothing trivial about the murder of one's son or daughter.

"Black Lives Matter" because we have in our midst many who think black lives don't matter.

Danielle Morgan, an assistant professor at Santa Clara University, was to meet her brother after a long COVID 19 inspired separation. Her Brother, a young black man was waiting for her on campus, when he was approached by campus security arriving in four vehicles. He was harassed simply for being there and being black. When the security detail arrived at Danielle's home. they asked her to show ID to prove her residence in her own home. This is why Black Lives Matter has to be stated. Too many people still don't get it.

And don't tell the parents of those listed below who were unarmed  and are now dead that "all lives matter."

Unarmed Black and Dead:

TRAYVON MARTIN (Walking home with iced tea and Skittles. Shot by George Zimmerman, who was found not guilty.)

KEITH SCOTT (Sitting in car, reading. Shot by police officer, who was not charged.)

ATATIANA JEFFERSON (Looking out her window, shot by police officer, who is still under indictment for murder.)

JONATHAN FERRELL (Asking for help after auto accident. Shot twelve times by police, case ended in mistrial.)

JORDAN EDWARDS (Riding in a car. Shot in the back of the head by police officer, who was found guilty of murder.)

STEPHON CLARK (Holdng a cell phone. Shot 8 times, 6 in the back. Officers not charged.)

AMADOU DIALLO (While taking out wallet, 4 officers fired 41 shots, all acquitted.)

RENISHA MCBRIDE (Auto accident, knocked on door for help. Homeowner was found guilty of second-degree murder.)

TAMIR RICE (Playing with toy gun, shot by police officer arriving on scene. Officer was not charged.)

SEAN BELL (Hosting a bachelor party, 50 rounds fired by police officers, who were found not guilty of charges.)

WALTER SCOTT (Pulled over for brake light, shot in the back by police officer, who pleaded guilty to civil rights violations.)

PHILANDO CASTILE (Pulled over in car, told officer he had a legally registered weapon in car. Officer acquitted of all charges.)

AIYANA JONES (Sleeping, accidentally shot by officer in a raid on wrong apartment. Officer cleared of all charges.)

TERRENCE CRUTCHER (Disabled vehicle, shot by police officer, who was found not guilty of manslaughter.)

ALTON STERLING (Selling CDs, shot at close range while being arrested. No charges filed.)

FREDDIE GRAY (Beaten to death by officers while being transported in police van. All officers involved were acquitted.)

JOHN CRAWFORD (Shopping at WalMart, holding a BB gun on sale, police officer was not charged.)

MICHAEL BROWN (Shot twelve times by officer, including in the back. No charges filed.)

JORDAN DAVIS (Killed because he was playing loud music. Shooter found guilty of first-degree murder.)

SANDRA BLAND (Pulled over for traffic ticket, tasered and arrested. Suspicious “suicide” while in jail. No charges.)

BOTHAM JEAN (Shot at home, which police officer mistook for her own. Officer found guilty of murder.)

OSCAR GRANT (Handcuffed and face-down, officer shot him in the back. Officer found guilty of involuntary manslaughter.)

COREY JONES (Waiting by his disabled vehicle, was shot three times by police officer, who was found guilty of murder.)

AHMAUD AUBREY (Jogging, shot by two men who claimed they suspected him of burglaries. Both men charged with murder and aggravated assault”

And this is not a complete list. In the last six months, George Floyd and more unarmed black citizens have died at the hands of unqualified, under-trained, perhaps racist, police officers.

This list demonstrates why we need to remind ourselves that black lives matter as much as those of privileged whites.