A Citizen New York

The truth hidden behind police brutality

Police brutality has been an issue that was ignored for ages, and now it has become a major problem in our society. And it is way deeper than lack of training because innocent lives are lost, not just because of their crimes but because of their race. The government needs to step up and create change by making new laws, changing the length of training required, building trust between communities, and mostly talking about race, not ignoring the facts because we are having systematic racial injustice that needs to be addressed. And before you can find a solution, you need to know the problem and understand it.

Dear future President,

First and foremost, I would like to congratulate you as the president of this country and I am looking forward seeing the great work you will do to make this country even better. I am one of the many citizens of this country who immigrated to the United States of America for freedom, for safety, and for a better education. I live in New York City and am currently enrolled at Brooklyn International High School as a senior.

The goal of my letter is to express the tears that have been shed in the past few years. The tears of those families who have lost their daughters, and sons, their uncles and aunts, their moms and dads.

The tears the nation has lost when its brave and innocent officers were taken away, and when its innocent civilians were taken away.

The tears that have been shed because there is lack of proper training

The tears that have been shed because there is fear of the other race

The tears that have been shed yet weren't swept off of our eyes.

Why? That’s the question we ask,

Expecting the unspoken words to be revealed

Excepting the obvious yet so unobvious to be determined

When our founding fathers created the Constitution

Men in uniforms were born, born for protection from the invader, from the villains

Men in uniforms were born for hope and safety

Well President, it doesn’t seem to be the case these past few years

The hope has become distrust

The safety has become fear

Rather than feeling fear from invaders, it became something we had for men in uniforms.

Dear President,

Tears have been shed on

February 26, 2012,

When Trayvon Martin “the guy with the hoodie” was killed because he looked “suspicious”

Tears have been shed on

July 17, 2014

When Eric Garner was killed for selling cigarettes in Staten Island

Tears have been shed on

Sept. 14, 2016

When a 13-year-old boy, Tyre King got killed because he was holding a fake gun

Tears have been shed on

Oct. 18, 2016

When Deborah Danner, an unstable 66-year-old black woman armed with a baseball bat

And tears have certainly been shed when those

Who killed them never got fired or condemned for their crimes

When we saw

Dear President,

Tears are still being shed knowing in

2016 alone, 791 people have already been killed

Dear President,

How many more of us are we going to shed tears for, because of our alleged protectors?

How many more of us will have to face the racial criminalization of our skins?

How many more of us will have to take matters in their hands because they lost or never had trust for the men in uniforms?

How many more of us will have to encounter police brutality for the fact

they weren’t trained enough

they are let into the world of men in the uniform just 21 weeks of life with a gun

They are given the responsibility for the life of a civilian after just 21 weeks of training

Dear President, like our former president has said it,

The moment is now for us to make changes.

Laws should be changed

Training should be transformed

The trust we once had should be regained.

The trust that was never known should be built

Dear Future president,

As a civilian of this country that was built on freedom, safety and justice

Men in the uniforms are protector, and hope

But that has changed

Lives are lost,

Justice for those who lost it unserved

I await the change in the police force training

I await the day, I could say and hear my friends say

I trust the police with my life, and with my safety.


Sincerely,

A Citizen of the World


References:

Downs Kenya, (2016, July 14). Why aren’t more people talking about Latinos killed by police?. PBS.org. Retrieved October 31, 2016, from http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/black-men-werent-unarmed-people-killed-police-last-wee

Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman and William K. Rashbaum, (October 24, 2016) nytimes.com. Justice Dept. Shakes Up Inquiry Into Eric Garner Chokehold Case. Retrieved from

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/25/nyregion/justice-dept-replaces-investigators-on-eric-garner-case.html?_r=0

Newsela, (2015, March 4). President's special team says let's improve police operations. Newsela.com. Retrieved October, 28, 2016, from https://newsela.com/articles/obama-policetaskforce/id/7814/

Brooklyn International High School

BIHS Seniors 2016-17

Brooklyn International High School, in New York City, is a public school for recent immigrants to the U.S.

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