For the last few days, we have been reading and discussing the movement sweeping the country in our house and with family. Like many others, we are attempting to stay up to date on everything going on, both nationwide and locally. Peaceful protests, turned riots, after police brutality ensued on thousands of innocent protestors. Our state capital was no different, and the city wears obvious signs of partially removed graffiti, broken and boarded windows. Along with protestors, picketing and congregating at the capital, there were hundreds of volunteers boarding up windows and doors to buildings in the downtown area.
Law enforcement is thickening, and the traffic is starting to condense. Parking is hard to come by, and people are arriving on foot from all sides of the giant building that peppers the skyline from every angle of our city. Regardless, we moved through crawling traffic and made our way past the front of the giant state capitol building. Hundreds of people stood, many wore ‘Black Lives Matter’ clothing along with their surgical masks, and others held signs which said “Say Their Names”, “Black Lives Matter,” and “Who’s Next?”.
DD13 was in the seat next to me, and DS6 was in the back seat. Today, six years ago, it was a happy day. The day I brought my son into the world – My first boy. After talking about the protests and riots with adults at his birthday party, DD13 admitted she really wanted to attend the riots with her friend from school tonight. The rage inside her about the injustice for young unarmed black men being killed by angry racist white officers in our society, is plentiful. She wants to hold a sign, stand with others wearing a black shirt, and raise her fist to our law enforcement and government. She is angry, and she will talk to anyone about it.
CREDIT MARCUS LAVERGNE
After discussion of the current societal uproar initially, DD13 cried tears of anger and resentment against anyone who would hurt another innocent citizen. That anyone would get away with murder, especially someone she’s supposed to be able to trust – law enforcement. I felt her emotions as if they were my own, and I reciprocated. I held her after she returned from the store, and told me about her conversation with an African American man after getting the item she came for and they had gotten done in the checkout. Again she cried at the thought of people being so cruel, and how people with her skin color were treating those with different skin colors. She cried at the pettiness of it all – at how undeniably tragic it all is.
It was clear, we had to do something. DD13, DS6 and I all got in the car, and we took a drive. We drove past many of the big buildings which are home to local governmental offices, before we merged through the traffic and drove around our state’s capitol building. We rolled down our windows and we held up our fists, cars in front of us honked and shouted out their windows, the crowd roared in support, and we drove by slowly.
In these unique times, where peaceful protests turn violent riots, and innocent people are killed by law enforcement officers, the SWAT and the National Guard throwing tear gas cans. In a time when it’s not safe for everyone to stand in a group with a sign, not safe enough to walk to the gym, or buy something with an unknowingly fake twenty dollar bill and then leave the store… Instead of standing out with your family and young loved ones, picketing and crowd supporting, you can support from your car. Take your family out, discuss what is going on with your children, and share your support and love on social media, or from your car! Throw your fist out the window in support of Black Lives Matter, those revolting against police brutality, and the killing of our young innocent citizens – without any repercussions. Support from your car.
What are you doing to bring awareness in your family? Drop a message in the comments below!
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Mama Bear Blended Family Support 