CHARLESTON

it truly is embarrassing to have to write about something like this again.

another city. another act of racism. another massacre. another act of domestic terrorism.

terrorism, simply defined is an act of violence intended to created fear for an economic, religious, political, or ideological goal. these acts deliberately disregard safety of non-combatants/civilians.

i cannot even wrap my head around what is happening in this country. i am struggling to get my thoughts down.

i have written far too many posts about love, acceptance, and difference. it makes me sick to do this again. but i feel that i must. the silence cannot win. racism cannot continue to win. we are terrorizing our own country by teaching hate and intolerance. and then when this shit happens, continuing to brush it aside and make no meaningful change.

if this were happening [which it does] in other countries, or were a real threat in other countries [which it is], we'd be all in [which we are]. why don't we value our own country more than others? why don't we take care of our own turf?
why don't we stop the hate? stop it on our own soil?

our country is one of the most unique countries in the world. everyone comes here to live. there are countless races, nationalities and ethnic backgrounds. if any country should be accepting of differences, we should? AM I RIGHT?

our county is based on the foundation of immigration. if you wanted to be a part of it, you had to move here [except for the native americans, of course]. almost every nationality in this country comes from a different place. i just cannot understand how we can be a nation that continues to teach intolerance of others and division amongst races.

the old excuses of family roots or southern heritage or it dates back 200 years have got to go.

the past is done. it's over. it order for us to move on we must let it go. the past happened. it has shaped us, but it continues to hold us back. instead of learning from it, we simply just keep repeating it.

our churches. work. schools. homes. grocery stores. parks. should be safe. they must be safe. we are not at war. i have said this before. we are not at war. our home is not a battleground. so let's stop treating it like one and work together as a nation.

it is the only way this will get better.

and we must do better.

because we are better. we, as a country, are better than this.



my thoughts, prayers, everything are with charleston tonight.

xoxo,
ks