I thought black lives mattered. I would certainly agree that they do. I would take it a step further — a more inclusive, diverse, and tolerant step further — and suggest that lives matter. Whether black, white, brown, green, yellow, pink, or blue. Lives matter*.
If black lives matter, how come there isn’t a hint of outrage over the 44 black lives ended during a recent three day period in Chicago?
Some couldn’t breathe.
Some wore a hoodie.
One or two may have held their hands up and begged “don’t shoot”.
If Obama had a son chances are that son would have looked like one of the 44.
Still another may have died under unusual circumstances worthy of further investigation.
Over a three day period in Chicago’s south side, roughly every 90 minutes a black life didn’t matter. That life was ended by murder. And not a whisper to be heard from the White House, the DOJ, Al Sharpton, MSNBC, CNN, SEIU, MORE, International ANSWER, Michael Moore, or any of those that dutifully whipped up the enraged masses in Ferguson and Baltimore.
No beer summits on the White House lawn.
No DOJ investigations nor dispatch of FBI agents to assess the situation on the ground.
No demands for a national conversation on race.
No new catchy hashtags along with hip t-shirts emblazoned with slogans to help well-heeled college kids feel like they are down with the struggle.
Rolling Stone hasn’t even invented a murder victim and then written extensively about him or her in order to politicize the problem.
SEIU and MORE haven’t hired a single protester to chant in the streets.
Chicago’s south side is where Obama’s political career was born. He was a community organizer there. His guy Rahm Emmanuel is the mayor of Chicago. He owns a house there that he rents to someone the media hasn’t yet ventured to introduce us to. Obama doesn’t just have ties there…he has the ability to pick up the phone and ask “what the **** is going on down the road from my house in Chicago!?”.
Instead, crickets. I thought black lives mattered.
* Unlike the college official who was berated for suggesting all lives matter, I won’t back down from saying it. Because it’s right. Don’t like it? Want to complain about it? Go for it. I don’t care.
Image: https://www.flickr.com/photos/pburka/15827895368/
