IN RESPONSE TO THE COUP At Capitol Hill, BLM CREATED A LIST OF DEMANDSAnd you should co-sign! It's crucial that we let our lawmakers know how outraged and upset we are by their lack of action following the chaos at the United States Capitol building on Wednesday January 6, 2021. We must also make it clear how dismayed and shocked we all were to witness the lack of action and presence law enforcement took at the time the Capitol was stormed by armed and angry white supremacists. Or as President Joe Biden stated, "... the mob of thugs..." It's not enough that Steven Sund, former Capitol Police Chief, resigned on Thursday January 7 following the attack on the U.S. Capitol. It's not enough that Twitter permanently suspended former President Donald Trump's personal twitter account on Friday January 8 following the riots he incited in his supporters. It's not enough that only thirteen people have been charged in Federal court (and approximately 40 charged in the Superior Court) for crimes committed at the Capitol building when there were at least a couple thousand people present and hundreds of them illegally entered the U.S. Capitol. All the while, Walter Wallace Jr. was brutally shot on October 26, 2020 in front of his own mother because police officers were more afraid of his blackness than they were willing to help a man suffering through a mental health crisis. We must put pressure on those whom we have elected to serve us, hear us, and protect us to make the decisions that suit EVERY American, not just white people. If you believe in equality, and I mean truly believe in it, then use the voice you have to speak up and say something! Do not be passive. Do not be blind. And, most importantly, do not pass on the opportunity to make change happen because you assume someone else will do it for you. What happened on Wednesday was a direct attack on Black Americans. It was a direct attack on Muslim Americans. It was a direct attack on Latinx Americans. It was a direct attack on Asian Americans. It was a direct attack on LGBTQIA+ Americans. It was a direct attack on Native Americans. It was a direct attack on Jewish Americans. And it was a direct attack on American women. If we learned anything from the events that took place on January 6, 2021, it's that you are only safe from police force and the law if you are a white supremacist. The Mexican children who were deliberately kept from their parents for weeks on end whilst being locked in jail-like cages at the US-Mexico border were not so lucky. The 226 Black Americans shot and killed by police officers in 2020 were not so lucky, and neither were their families. The Muslim Americans who are banned from flying because they are not complying with "white culture" are not so lucky. The Native Americans whose land is being stolen from them still whilst being belittled, ignored, and not acknowledged for their importance in American culture and what they and their ancestors have created for us to all exist today are not and were not so lucky. So all I have left to say at this point is that we all need to be better and do better. And to make it easier, you can start right here by clicking the button below. But beyond that, the rest is up to you. You must do the research. You must do the reading. You must do the watching and the listening and the learning. Take action, take accountability, and make a change. To read the list and sign your name, please click the button below.
Edited on January 20, 2021
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The room is silent. All you can hear is the sound of your own breathing and your slightly tempered heartbeat in the back of your head. Your nostrils flair as your vision shivers away from the floor. The hand in front of you pulls out a brick filled with pages as thin as a butterfly’s wing. It’s got a hard black surface with two gold words etched across the cover, “The Bible”. As your eyes read the words, your stomach sinks and the nausea floods back.
You lift your hand in slow motion because you already know what must be done. Shallow breathing turns to deep breaths of air – enough to inflate your lungs that are trying so hard to work against nature. You lick your chapped lips and speak, “I swear that the evidence that I shall give, shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help me God”. You slip your hand away from the book and place it in your lap. Many eyes flutter around the room and sit with anticipation. The process that is about to occur happens daily in America. It’s a justice system that filters the guilty from the innocent. It’s a way to keep the good people of this country safe from the bad. And it all starts with an oath to tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth. You must be honest to the people of this country, so America can uphold its high standards of freedom and justice. But, you cannot just make a promise to your country, you must make a promise to God. Because God sees all and knows all. Because God is the one being you must never lie to for that is considered a sin. Because apparently this country is built upon God and faith as well as freedom. Freedom, that is, to choose our own sexuality, president, faith and religion, and be equal with everyone else. Let me give an example: Sexuality: capacity for sexual feelings; a person’s sexual orientation or preference. We have the freedom to choose our own sexuality. It is a right that every single citizen of the United States of America has. But for some reason, it is not okay to come out and admit that you are not straight. It should not have to be hard to tell the world who you really are and how you really feel. You should be able to do it and not be afraid of being judged or shunned. Leviticus 18:22 – You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination. Hundreds of years ago, people were hung, stoned, or drowned because they liked their same sex. It’s not like someone said, “Hey! That’s not okay. Let’s make sure that for the rest of time society hates homosexuals.” People aren’t born to be haters. In fact, you aren’t born with any preconceived thoughts or beliefs. You aren’t even born with fear. People are groomed from the day they are born. Your parents raise you to have morals and values, and it is not until you are old enough to truly comprehend what all of those mean that you can then start to have your own thoughts and beliefs, which is why the idea of homosexuality being wrong had to have come from somewhere. The Bible and Christianity has been around for centuries. Our Founding Fathers obviously believed in the Bible and what it stood for. Their faith and religion was important to them, which is why they chose to let Americans practice whatever religion they wanted and allowed them to have something just as important for themselves. However, they based their beliefs, and ultimately this country’s beliefs, off what they thought was right, which was the Bible. The Bible – the thing that has been around for centuries, remember? The thing that has teachings in it that date back so many years that some people make a living off it with occupations devoted to the study of the language in which it was written so that they can tell us what it all means today. The men who put the laws, rules, and standards of this country together used their own beliefs to form all of it. They were not born thinking that being gay was wrong, they grew up practicing a religion that told them it was wrong. They grew up believing what was taught to them and used all that information to form their own opinions and beliefs. Now I’m not saying that the Bible is wrong or that Christianity is wrong. My point is that the men who put the constitution together, who created the foundation and basis of this country, were influenced by something that was important to them that is nearly three thousand years old. It is crazy to think that our beloved home and country is still running based on ideas that are almost three thousand years old while we can’t even keep up on the newest model of the iPhone. How can we expect to grow and develop as a country and society when we’re still trying to function off amendments written in 1787? Why do people still think it’s right to use the Bible as a convincing factor that someone will tell the truth. I mean no hate or judgement, but I don’t give a damn about the Bible. What makes a court think that me, an agnostic, is going to tell the truth just because you place a Bible in front of me and make me say a few words. Obviously, I wouldn’t sit in a court room and lie, but the Bible is not what’s making me tell the truth. Think about this – we’re living in a country whose constitution tells us, “No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.” In what scenario, in 2018, is that ever going to apply? When are we, as Americans, ever going to have to give our consent to house a soldier because they need a place to stay during a time of peace? This is from the same constitution that gives every American the right to bear arms. Now, I’m not saying I agree or disagree with this because my opinion on the matter isn’t important. However, I would like to point out that this specific amendment was written during a time when it was necessary to own guns. If Americans didn’t have, own, or use guns at the time this was written to fight for their independence and freedom then there would be no America today. All of that aside, I don’t get why the Bible is so relevant to today’s America. I don’t understand why Congress must pray before a session. I personally don’t pray, and I don’t practice any religion in which I would ever pray for anything, so why must this country single out all the people like myself and basically say, “Sorry, but we’re doing it anyway.” I thought I had the right to choose my own religion and faith, so why do I have to conform to something I don’t believe in just because it now has to do with politics and the way my country is run. Doesn’t that defeat the purpose of America? If God is so damn important to America, then why don’t we just have him run our country? In order to promise to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth you have to make an oath to the lord. Tell me, is that really freedom? Is that really a democracy? Is that really the way we run this country? I've somehow managed to keep my mouth shut during this election and just listen. I don't know how I did it, especially since I've always got an opinion about something, but now I feel like I need to get some things off my chest.
First, let's strip away any politics and forget about the presidential candidates. I want to talk about opinions, humanity, and love. It wasn't until last night that I truly felt worried about the future of America. No matter which candidate wins and becomes the next President of the United States, there's going to be a huge divide in America. It makes me sad to think that after Wednesday, my life and everyone else's in this country could be totally different, and not a good kind of different. Everyone has an opinion about what and who they think is best for this country, and all I ever hear is opinions in the form of facts. It's one thing to be passionate about what you believe in and support, but it's a whole other thing to be so headstrong about what you believe that you shove it down someone's throat and make them feel like their beliefs are wrong. Opinion: a view or judgement formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge No matter how strongly you believe in something, not matter what it is, it doesn't make it a fact. Period. You know what is a fact? This country needs change. It needs progression. But most importantly, it needs to be united. Not a single individual can do that on their own! It takes every American, whether you were born in this country or are an immigrant, to come together and realize that the love we share for America outweighs any opinion anyone can have. I know that the future of this country is important, and that's why I'm writing this. I'm not trying to please anyone or make anyone mad. I just wish that Americans had enough respect for themselves and others to believe what they want while still being a decent human being. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that you're a bad person for giving your opinion and believing what you want. I am, however, saying that it's not okay to intimidate, hurt, and bully fellow Americans just because they don't agree with you. We all care about America and want changes. That being said... It wasn't until just now that I truly felt worried about the future of America. This country is the land of the people, the home of the brave. WE decide the future. WE make the choices. WE can either choose to hate or choose to love. If you cannot choose to love your country over hating those who disagree with you then I do not know what is to come of this beautiful place I call home. Fact: America has come a long way. Fact: There's still a long road ahead. Fact: I voted today. Opinion: I think one candidate is better than the other. Does it matter who? No. Love was not on the ballot, but I am voting for it anyways because I value this country and what we stand for. Do you? |
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