Kneeling to protest police brutality is not the antithesis
of standing to honor those who have served the country.
Kneeling to protest the injustice meted by many in law
enforcement is not the polar opposite of standing to honor the sacrifice and
service of many in law enforcement.
Whether kneeling in protest or standing in pride, We are
America.
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Some claim that kneeling to protest police brutality,
particularly in a public sphere, is disrespectful to law enforcement personnel,
especially those who have died in the line of duty.
However,
What is actually disrespectful to law enforcement personnel are
the actions of some of their peers – actions which inspired folks to kneel in the
first place.
The officer who shot a man in the
back and tried to cover it up,
The dispatcher who didn't pass
along the information that the person to be checked on was child holding a toy
gun,
The officer who doesn’t ask said
child to drop their weapon, instead shooting the child before his partner has a
chance to get out of the car,
The officer who shot a man in the
face in full view of his body camera, but lied about the reason and nature of the
man's death on his submitted report,
The officers who, in looking for a
5'10", 160 lb, 30 year-old man with a shaved head and a goatee,
Forcefully detained a 5'2"
120 lb, 19 year-old young woman,
The officer who body slammed an
man who was standing on the sidewalk putting away his phone, minding his own
business,
The officer who, upon seeing a group
of African American and Latino kids running in park, immediately accused them
of stealing something because, 'the only reason [epithet] and [epithet] run is
when they've stolen something',
**********
Here's a thing.
If you're more concerned with the What of kneeling,
Than you are with the Why that inspired the kneeling in the
first place,
Stop taking the Easy
route of kvetching about an action you don't like, and start doing The Hard
Work of removing the reason for the action.
You don't like to see people kneel in protest? Then do what
you can do to stop the injustice that inspired them to kneel in the first
place. Help remove the reason for the protest.
