This isn't protesting ... this is rioting. #AllLivesMatters

I am not going to sit here and say that I understand what it's like to be a person of color, but I can say I understand what it's like to be a person that is targeted. As a woman, I have to fight exponentially harder for everything I have accomplished, but even as a woman, who has had to fight, this pales in comparison to the recent current events. I see so much violence, hatred, and people undoing so much of what has been fought for by peaceful protests ... black people, gay people, women ... this fight is so much bigger than one race, so I urge the use of #AllLivesMatters

Since the beginning of time, our country has fought for freedom.

War vs. Protest

They are not one and the same. War is a necessary evil. One that should be fought to protect our nation, our people, our livelihood from outside forces. A protest is standing up for what you believe in, in a peaceful manner, to advocate for simple Human Civil Rights that should be afforded to every person. 

War takes lives of those who choose to protect. War is bloody. War is devastating. War is the root of all evil. Yet, war remains necessary. War should be reserved for when our nation is being threatened by outside sources - terrorists, other nations' militaries.  My grandfathers fought in wars for this country. They fought so you are safe from outside entities. 

Protest should not end in rioting.  It should not end in looting, it should not end in violence.  Protesting should be used to fight for what you believe in, peacefully, without resorting to violence, starting fires, destroying other peoples' personal property. Violence and riots are not going to stop the violence.  It's not going to stop racism. It's not going to stop police brutality.  Protesters that turn something peaceful into something dangerous are basically homegrown terrorists. 

One of the most memorable protests in American History is the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.  The purpose of the march was to advocate for the civil and economic rights of African Americans. At the march, Martin Luther King Jr., standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial, delivered his historic "I Have a Dream" speech in which he called for an end to racism. Listening to his speech gives me goosebumps.

In this day and age, I don't understand how people can still say (or think) that they are fighting the same fight that resulted in this iconic speech.  I'm sure it'll be said this is because I am a white person of privilege, which is mostly true, aside from being a woman who has been a victim at the hand of so many men, but I am privileged, because of the color of my skin - that is no different than saying that a black person is targeted because of the color of their skin.  It does not make me any safer than it makes a person of color. I, as a woman, cannot freely walk outside in the evening, alone, wondering if a crazy rapist is going to follow me and pull me into a dark alley ... so I walk in fear, but maybe I can walk down the street and not be targeted because of the color of my skin, but certainly not because of my gender.   Hell, my oldest daughter was targeted by a white police officer because she was wearing a pair of Tim's boots and hoop earrings as he just assumed she was "looking for trouble", she was also targeted by a different white police officer in the mall when she was there with her black friend.  

The Second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights in 1987, is another peaceful protest, where it was reported that 300,000 people, gay Americans and a diverse coalition of their supporters, marched calling for more Federal money for AIDS research and treatment and for an end to discrimination against homosexuals.  This paved the way for so many in the LGBTQ community to stand up for their right for equality, as they are humans, just like everyone else, and deserve the same rights our nation is built on. 

Women Strike for Equality in 1970 - On August 26, 1970, 50 years after women gained the right to vote in the United States, 50,000 women paraded down Fifth Avenue in New York City; it was described by Time magazine as the largest gathering for women’s rights since the suffrage protests. The event, called the Women’s Strike for Equality, was sponsored by the National Organization for Women. The march established feminism as a force to be reckoned with and sparked sister demonstrations across the country. Just two years later, in June 1972, Title IX passed, forbidding discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs that received federal financial assistance.

My point is, maybe I didn't grow up scared of what people think of me because of the color of my skin, or my sexual preference, but I did grow up scared of what people think of me because I am a woman.  I went to a Catholic grammar school, up until 8th grade, where I switched to a public school.  I didn't know anything about having friends, because I was an outcast, for the most part, at the Catholic school.  When I started attending a public school, I had so many friends, people that didn't care where I lived, or that I was a naive white girl from the good part of town.  I had friends that I could ask "stupid" questions to, and they would explain things to me, making me more culturally rounded.  One story that always sticks out in my head is when one of my black girlfriends told me she had gotten a perm and I looked at her funny and said, but your hair is straight.  She just laughed and said, "girl, when a white girl gets a perm, she gets it so her hair is curly, but when a black girl gets a perm, she gets it so her is straight".  I am grateful that neither of us saw skin color, we only saw another person.  I just wish my children and grandchildren didn't have to live in a world where racism, violence, rioting, and utter disrespect for human life are issues.

Actions are what make you who you become.

Stand together in solidarity. Not in dissidence.