If we are not careful, we will have another home turf race war! Instead of fighting over the freedom of a whole human being (African Americans), we will have a war initiated off of trying to prove that our freedom is more than a notion. It’s not just a known concept; however, it has to be engrained in our souls.

When freedom resonates within ones whole being, it doesn’t produce fear or mistrust of one another. Freedom means safety, respect, consideration, and confidence in the systems that evolve to feel included and not excluded from similar rights and justices. There is no such thing as privilege, as we all are treated the same. In which this is most certainly not the case…

But what do I know? That war where we fought each other (American Civil War), United States against itself, was never about freedom of slaves as many have been taught (inserts sarcasm). Well many do love to confess this today. Many believe it was about states rights. Interesting. Well for me and the rest of us, let me briefly state that when I see a confederate flag flown on the back of an old truck, I don’t imagine honor of ancestry; I see racism being confessed. Sorry not sorry.

Yes, that war was many years ago. So why is this so prevalent today? Well…we are heading right back down that same road. Fighting within ourselves again. Something that should be so simple. Just like back then, people shouldn’t OWN other people. PERIOD! People shouldn’t beat, rape, torture, force to work, and freely kill people because of the color of their skin.

And just like today, it should be so simple…that systems shouldn’t be designed to unfairly treat people of color nor should police officers kill unarmed blacks during arrests. Hence, the birth of Black Lives Matter (briefly stated minus so much history).

Black Lives Matter simply states, “we are human, we have families, we are sons and daughters, we are sisters and brothers, we are cousins, we are moms and dads, and we are loved. If we are committing a crime; we should be arrested and taken to jail and face a jury of our peers…in that order. We shouldn’t be buried because of the disregard to who we are. We are no longer slaves nor should we be seen as only 3/5 (three fifths) of a person. We are not property. Our lives do matter.

But no, saying those words offends so many somehow. Yet our deaths don’t. We should’ve just followed directions, they yell. I wonder what directions George Floyd wasn’t following when he was pulled out of his vehicle over $20. There are so many names where the threat was subsided when shots were fired.

YES…I totally get that people ought to just follow directions. However, one thing I know from watching people is that ALL people from time to time have found themselves in situations where their attitudes or tempers were not ideal. (You do know that whites do these same things, right?) We are not all perfect little angels. We all have messed up; however our mess ups in the hands of officers with proper training can yield better outcomes for us all.

But do you know what else will help us? Its really not as black and white as we think it is. It’s much more deeper than that. It started many many years ago in a garden. If you don’t really believe evil spirits exists or a supernatural realm, you may want to stop reading now. I’m going to take it to church for a moment.

There is this guy…ole low down scoundrel. He comes to steal, kill, and destroy. There is a bible verse that speaks to it all too well. Ephesians 6:12…

“For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.“

I’ll scream this from the top of the roofs! It’s not about us. It’s about what the enemy is doing through us. But I’ll try not to get too deep here so I’ll make it plain. This is EXACTLY what the devil wants!!! He wants us constantly fighting each other! And truth be told, he is WINNING!

As long as we are arguing with folks across the globe that we do not even know on social media, about ideas and perspectives we hold without regard to how others feel or perceive things…he will continue to win. We are arguing over WORDS. We cry out Black Lives Matter and those that don’t want to understand what we are saying or understand our positions believe we are trying to take one the world!

Listen…one thing I know about black people is that we are often the most compassionate and loving people. We’ll love on all people that allow us to. Even in slavery days, we didn’t love on our masters’ kids out of some sort of requirement. We couldn’t help it and even today, when allowed in those circles, we love and we love hard. We take care of people. Despite what the media teaches or what rumor says, to know us is to love us.

The enemy is trying to create a turf battle. If we don’t step back and listen before we speak, he will continue to win. All I ask is that we take time to listen (read) to one another. Instead of having a strong comeback comment, ask a question of clarification. Get to understand the statements/posts/hashtags/banners first before criticizing them.

Get to know us. Know our real history and not the watered down versions. Stand with us. Or at least not against us. There shouldn’t be another “us against us….again.”

Thanks for your attention. Remember you are your own competition.

Competition of 1