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“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

                                                                                                 Martin Luther King, Jr.

This past week has been emotionally difficult for me as I am sure it has been for most people. I watched videos from different angles of a man being murdered by police officers even as he and others pleaded for his life. If there is a silver lining to this senseless execution of a black man, most people regardless of race or gender agree it was blatant murder.  The thought that have kept crossing my mind is that the man George Floyd could have been  my son, my husband, my brothers, my nephews, my uncles, my cousins and my male friends.  And their lives are important not only because they are human beings but for what they mean to me.

We can no longer sweep this issue of police brutality under the rug and pretend it does not happen. We need to call it for what it is. George Floyd’s death was the killing of an African-American man by a white police officer. Again, Mr. George Floyd was murdered because of the color of his skin. Regardless of your race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, and sexuality –whatever makes us different – We all have a responsibility to speak up. IT WAS WRONG. IT WAS INHUMANE. THERE’S NO PLACE FOR IT IN PRESENT DAY AMERICA. Unfortunately, this is the reality for African-Americans and EVERYONE needs to be part of the solution to end this. We all need to talk about the role RACISM plays in causing the premature death of African-Americans. And then act in a united manner to implement all kinds of policies to eliminate this scourge that if left unchecked will be the end of our country. Thank God for Chris Cooper. Who knows what would have happened to him in Central Park if the New York City Police Department officers responded quickly to Amy Cooper’s (no relation of Chris Cooper) staged frantic call just because she was asked to put a leash on her dog where clearly visible signs required that.

Franklin County has joined a few counties in the United States to declare that racism is a public health crisis. This should not be limited to a few counties. All counties in the United States must declare racism as a PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS.  To be defined as a public health crisis, Dr. Sandro Galea, Dean of Boston University School of Public Health, notes that the problem must affect large numbers of people, it must threaten the health over the long-term and it must require the adoption of large scale solutions. By declaring racism as a public health crisis, we educate the public and address legacy policies that have created and continue to perpetuate inequities in the health system. WE MUST NO LONGER BE SILENT. WE MUST ACT. I SHOULD ACT. YOU SHOULD ACT.

What’s one to do to bring about these changes that we all desire. Melody Cooper, Chris Cooper’s sister captured it succinctly in her opinion piece in the May 31, 2020 issue of The New York Times … If you’re an ally, what can you do? Stand with us. Bear witness. Continue the discussion and support legal action. Refuse to accept racism in your midst, even in small ways — call out a cruel joke or rude behavior. Be brave and challenge it all. You can transform your own world through how you teach your children, and how you speak to your neighbors and co-workers. It is up to you, not to a leader nor any single protest or petition. Your everyday commitment is what will start to bring the change you want to see. Start small, step forward and let your action join with others’ to become a rising tide that cannot be stopped….

Graphic by Gbenga Olawuyi