#BlackLivesMatter

If you have been on the Internet or watched the news within the past couple of years, you have probably heard the term “black lives matter.”  Black Lives Matter is a political movement arguing for better treatment of Black people in the United States.

One very big problem that it targets is the epidemic of police brutality. In recent years we have found that some police officers use unnecessary force against Black people, especially Black men, force which is often not used against White people who are being charged with the same crimes.  News reports have shown that cops have shot and killed unarmed and seemingly innocent black men.  Unfortunately, I myself have experienced police brutality against a family member.  My father was riding his bicycle in Suisun City when two police officers got out of their car and stopped his bike, shouting at him to get on the ground. The cops thought he wasn’t moving fast enough so they pushed him to the ground and held him down, even though he was showing no signs of retaliation. The experience messed up his back and cost him a trip to the hospital to get his spine checked out. The officers tried to justify themselves by saying that my father looked like a man that had recently robbed a house in that neighborhood, but the man they described was twenty years old and had long dreadlocks, while my father is fifty years old and has very short hair.  No apologies were given to my father for the unnecessary hassling.

With all of this violence against African-Americans from the police force, people of all races have banded together to protest against the mistreatment of Black Americans.  “I think the Black Lives Matter movement is really important right now.  I have seen my relatives and friends face discrimination for being black and I hope that this movement can stop that,” said Zariah Jackson.

“I agree with Zariah,” said Ny’Saan Craft. “I feel like our community is facing a lot of discrimination right now which we should have dealt with a long time ago.  I think this is a great movement that can help a lot of people.”

With #BlackLivesMatter trending and more people following the movement, hopefully we can see our country become more fair to the black community.