I often hear people say, “All lives matter!” in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. While this is a fundamental truth, black lives are especially in my thoughts these days. There is a lot of evidence that the lives of black men, women, and children are not valued by our society in the same way that others’ are. If we just look at the facts, black men receive longer sentences in prison for the same crimes. Black women die much more often in childbirth than white women, a tragedy often driven by inadequate healthcare and poverty over generations. The list could go on and on. Things are clearly not equal.
While law and order is important, and our property should be protected, we need to work to balance this with an increased value for life. My grandmother used to say, “Don’t use a cannon to shoot a fly off a fence.” By that, she meant that my responses needed to reflect the severity of the offense. The suspected crimes of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and countless others were in no way severe enough to warrant losing their lives. We need to remember that a life is worth infinitely more than the alleged piece of property lost, such as the counterfeit $20 bill that George Floyd was suspected of using before he died while being arrested. This is just one example.
Growing up, I recited the pledge of allegiance every morning in school. I remember repeating in unison with my classmates the words, “with liberty and justice for all.” If we are going to live up to our belief that all lives do matter, we need to spend much more time and energy worrying about black ones. Right now, as a society, we often act as if they don’t matter much at all. It’s ok for us to focus on how to do better by our black citizens in this moment so that we can do better in the future. It is ok to say, “Black Lives Matter”.
Tricia Page
Sautee
