Dear Future President,

“Just as the [Republican] party has been quick to criticize the president for not uttering the words ‘radical Islamic terrorism’ so too must it own up to its own reticence on… uttering the words ‘racial justice’” This quote, from an article written by Theodore Johnson, brings up a valid point about the involvement of politics in the problem of racial intolerance. A prominent issue in 2016 is the alarming rates of police brutality and police deaths in a national conflict endangering many lives. Many have strong opinions on this topic, and controversy has erupted relentlessly around it. Dear future president, I believe you should unite black and white American citizens and combat racial injustice in the 21st century.

To begin, many people have the opinion that predominantly black communities that are in shambles are the result of laziness or lack of intelligence in the majority of its population. This is not entirely accurate, considering many African Americans cannot afford to make a future for themselves because they live in crime-ridden communities due to poor funding. The same article written by Theodore Johnson states that “a great deal of economic malady is concentrated in black communities and effectively cordoned off from the rest of the population.” How is an African American entrepreneur going to create his/her own small business and make money when his/her community is unable to give enough funding to its hospitals? An overwhelming 27.4% of black people live in poverty and have to resort to crime in order to make a living because of the economic unfairness preventing their appropriate education. Is this the future we want for America? Additionally, a more relevant topic is the immense amount of police brutality, resulting in people using violence as a way of protest. “The 38 shooting deaths from January 1 through August 26 represent a 58% increase over the number (24) for the same period in 2015…,” explains the CNN article by Jason Hanna and Steve Visser. This prominent increase in shooting deaths has not gone unnoticed, as many have taken to the streets to protest and spread the Black Lives Matter movement. Above all, there will be many benefits to uniting the American people in order to create a safer future for our youth. Creating jobs is an important issue in 2016 campaigns, and one way to do it is give more funding to the repair of African American provinces, allowing more small businesses to flourish. “Taking this approach can reduce the employment-rate gap between whites and blacks…,” according to Theodore Johnson. If more businesses are able to be opened, more jobs will be created and more money will circulate, helping reduce much of the poverty in America.

Ultimately, humans of any color have the same anatomy, and judging others on a superficial detail such as skin color is useless; this is why the discrimination among races should be obliterated. As a middle school student, I want to live in a future where everyone is treated equally; I want to live in a future where everyone is treated as human no matter what they look like on the outside. Dear future president, I believe you should teach Americans acceptance and love, as opposed to fear and discrimination. Fear only promises destruction.

Sincerely,

Jazzy C.