Monday; May 16

Another weekend – another mass shooting. Another mass shooting – another crime apparently fueled by hate and bias. Another act of hate – another temptation to point fingers. Murder had been around since the beginning of time but our society, with its advancements in technology, have made more efficient ways to kill more people and spread the bad news more quickly.

As a community mourns the loss of its citizens our nation must come to grips with these modern acts of violence that generate fear, embarrassment, anger and helplessness. It is tempting to deal with this tragedy by saying it was a random act of violence, but that doesn’t heal the sadness. Conversely, it is tempting to blame races, genders or generations; but the truth is that the overwhelming number of people who resemble the shooter condemn the incident and are embarrassed and angry that it took place.

So, what can we do? First, we must come together in support of all the communities that have experienced these tragedies. Then, we must unite in our distain for the violence being perpetuated on “us”. When anyone is harmed in an act of violence we are all victims because society loses a little bit of its safety and its dignity. Finally, we must work together to find the answers. We can’t give up, we can’t put the onus on others, we can’t walk away in either for fear or disgust – we must join our hands and our voices to call evil, evil. We cannot excuse it or ignore it – we must address it!
Some people will say it is too little too late, but our thoughts and prayers go out to Buffalo and the many other places grieving today.
Our work doesn’t end with the platitudes, but it is a place to start while we do what we can to stand up to violence.

Think About It!

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