Some of the people I love most in the world have children who are not white.
Some of the people I would fight to the end for are not Christian. Some are Muslim. Some are atheist.
We can do better.
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I grew up in a gun positive culture. We had guns -- my dad used to be a collector. My classmates had guns -- they would go hunting before classes started, stash them in their cars on the school lot, and reclaim them after school. No one ever questioned this. It was normal.
It was also the 90s.
We were also white.
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I see this now as privilege.
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#wecandobetter
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I was married to a man who was mentally unstable AND who easily obtained a concealed weapons permit. He used this as a reason to bring his gun everywhere. Going to get pizza? Gun. Going to get drinks? Gun. Going to a concert? Gun.
He tried to kill me twice that I am aware of.
But he was legally able to carry everywhere, based on some paperwork. He was also white, so no one batted an eye.
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#wecandobetter
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We MUST do better.
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For those of you who don't know, The Wee One is on the autism spectrum. What does that mean? It means he doesn't always get social cues. It means that he is very VERY particular about instructions and rules, and how to follow them and how they work.
It means that I worry that someday he will be pulled over and know the procedure better than the officer. It means I worry about him taking back to someone who carries for a living.
How much more would I have to worry if he was not white?
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#wecandobetter
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To my friends of color, and to the children of color I love: I will fight for you. I will ask everyone I know to fight for you. I promise.
To my law enforcement friends: I know it's not all of you. I will stand by you and help you to eradicate this problem.
To everyone reading: use the hashtag. Tweet. Post. Don't lose the opportunity to speak. Fight back. We can end this.
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#wecandobetter
So let's do it.
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