We've read the names, heard the details and witnessed the horrors. The stories join to form a picture of race and justice in America. One that is ugly and stomach-turning. But it is not in fact a picture, it's a mirror. And as a nation, we are finally having to face what history, policy and fear have created, and what patriotism to the United States really is.
We are a country that has been unwilling to discuss racial issues and unable to address the disparities that truly exist. To heal as a nation, the emotional attachment we have to our homeland has to be able to recognize and own the collective history and current characters.
In a statement on the Senate floor, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) said, “To ignore their struggles does not make them disappear, it simply leaves you blind and the American family very vulnerable.” He is correct. Both sides of the aisle have released statements about heartbreak and valuing lives. But they are statements, they are not action. They do not make the struggles or inequality disappear. As humans, regardless of political leaning, we should be troubled and we should feel bad about racial imbalance throughout the nation. These issues need to be discussed through personal conversations, work dialogue, social media and the media at large. It's time that we address racial inequality and deep-seated disparities in this country, and it’s our patriotic duty to do so.