No Justice, No Peace
Updated: Jun 17, 2020
Unrest and uneasiness is what the country feels with systemic injustices being brought to the forefront. There has been no reason, cause or justification to let down any guards, after all these years, the same protest ring out throughout the country, “no justice, no peace.”
Being sold into slavery, jim crow laws, institutionalized bondage and the list goes on and on...how can there be peace in the midst of all of the chaos? As an African American man, I speak from experience that I feel no peace and I certainly can not attest to the inalienable rights guaranteed by the founding fathers that went home to their plantations after signing said decree. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness seem like fictitious rewards at the end of an unreachable rainbow.
How can I expect such fairytales, when my life can be ended by the unjust of a “threatened” officer or even by a citizen making an arrest that they feel is just as just, only to end in a death sentence from a speedy trial with the citizen’s doing the arrest being both judge and jury. Where is the Independence in all of the chaos? Where is the peace that comes from a country that allegedly believes in justice? Without the justice, no, there can be no peace. The protests that have risen not only in the US, but worldwide demonstrates the lack of justice that not only has came from the killings of so may other African Americans not just this year, but from so many years past. It’s not about being black or white, it’s about being human and mistreated, no matter how dark or light your skin may be. I do wonder, how many other people feel a tingle down their spine when driving and see a police officer behind them, not because they have done something wrong, but because they may “look like a suspect.” How many have tried to shop in a store and have people go down the other aisle or clench their purses no matter how well groomed or spoken you may be. How many fear going to sleep at night because your door may be kicked in and you’re shot, all due to a clerical error.
After so many injustices, is this truly the land of the free or the land of caution with all guaranteed rights, except the guaranteed right to breath….
Written by Trakell