Confronting Our Tipping Point

Is it really possible for the roots of racism to be destroyed in the United States? I believe because I have hope.

There have been continuous tragedies involving police officers using unjustified deadly force against Black children, teenagers, men, and women. Sanctioned police brutality has endorsed this and has allowed this to happen year after year, again and again.

Atrocities against Black humanity have been perpetuated for centuries at the powerful hands of White people shrouded in privilege. The conclusion is that here has been an organized and sustained effort to do so because Black human beings have been dehumanized.

Our nation is now at a pivotal moment in time. This is our tipping point.

Change must begin at the top. However, initiatives for change in our country have yet to be shared with American citizens.

I wrote this poem to express my frustration about the lack of leadership from the highest position in our nation.

We Needed Your Leadership

You talked about insurrection

when people have been pleading for a leader to provide national direction.

You stood in front of a church holding someone’s Bible,

but the injustice you perpetuate cannot be rivaled.

Your failure to denounce police brutality

only reinforces our reality.

You are incapable of having a heart filled with compassion and empathy.

So, the people of our nation continue to be absorbed in agony.

You failed to take a powerful stand and passionately decry the horrific crime against a member of humanity.

Instead, you flexed your authoritative muscle in your traditional style that reflects pure vanity.

This nation needed your leadership that gives a sense of direction but you ignored our voices that rang out during demonstrations.

The conclusion is that you do not believe in the values of liberty and justice for all that make up the fabric of this nation.

We continue to echo the cries of George Floyd “I can’t breathe”.

Only when police brutality and racism are eliminated will we be able to sigh a breath of relief.

I Still Believe Change Is On the Horizon

I have hope.

I believe that the unified voices of Black people, Brown people,White people, famous people, poor people, non-English speaking people, young people, old people, and rich people that resound through the nation and world who oppose racial inequality and police brutality who proclaim justice during peaceful demonstrations will be heard.

I have hope.

I believe all of the conversations about racism and police brutality that have continued to take place through the ages that have not been enough will finally reach the hearts of those who have the power to change practices and policies.

I have hope.

I believe that people who have denied the existence of the evil forces of racism and police brutality who have been haunted by the horrific images of George Floyd as he died a brutally inhuman death will teach their children to love others regardless of the color of their skin.

I have hope.

The Dream Remains Alive

An excerpt from the some of the most powerful words spoke in modern history follows:

“And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.”

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!”

- “I Have A Dream” speech by the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered at the March on Washington, 1963

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Dr. Deborah M. Vereen is a retired Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher, School Principal, Director of Pupil Personnel Services, Assistant to the Superintendent for Family and Community Engagement, and Professor of Multicultural education. Her website is www.Drdeborahmvereen.com and she is dedicating the rest of her life to serving as a Family Engagement Influencer.