The sweet ballad of the Sparrow signaling spring, 
was silenced by shrill cries for justice and sounds of gunfire.
The world is forever changed. 
The country that I thought I knew, 
divided between its citizens and the law. 
Some are compelled to choose sides, while others remain 
silent, out of fear of their words being weaponized against them. 
Blame is shifted to one side then the next.

One is demonized and penalized, the other is praised
and glorified. Words of condolence; promises for 
change are exchanged, only for the present 
incident to fade into the subconscious of 
society in favor of another tragedy. The victim
of the present tragedy, is used as a catalyst 
for larger ideas and conversations. 

When I was a child, I thought as a child.
As I matured, I set aside childish thoughts. 
Living In the midst of a national crisis; 
In the wake of violent horror yanked me out
of my cocoon of blissful childhood ignorance.
In the age of ubiquitous technology, 
parents are powerless against the woes of the outside world. 
I Have been forced to grow in the blink of an eye,
confronted with a world that I was not prepared for,
under the protection of my home and watchful eyes of school officials. 

Contrary to what the media portrays, the issues are 
not limited to black and white and our enemy is not flesh and blood. 
Issues within society are not merely legislative, but sociocultural. 
Racism is not an inherent quality, nor a trait. 
Its perpetuation does not rest upon the shoulders of a single unit. 
Racism, prejudice and hatred are like stealthy serpants:  

They fester, like a latent virus, 
they creep in during times of vulnerability, when blame must be be assigned,
they are planted through stereotypes and generalizations in the media, 
by negative social interactions,  
or simply learned by parroting the bigoted ideas and behavior of those closest to us. 

Bigotry is the enemy of intellect. 
Racism is the enemy of reason. 
Silence is the enemy of progress. 
Apologetics for evil are the enemy of truth. 
As a generation, it is our duty to be 
steadfast in our convictions.

To dismiss the problems or invalidate the life experiences of others 
is improper. To make predetermined judgements based
upon race, color or creed is irresponsible. 
The gateway to change is not tolerance, it is respect. It is the courage to walk in truth.
It is the willingness to encourage diverse ideas through honest discourse and disagreement. 
Change is not reserved for the future, 
the future is now.

We possess a unique opportunity to reshape a nation. While all may not agree upon the solutions, we must all understand that the root causes of racism and prejudice are not simply willful ignorance and are not limited to outright acts of violence or intentional malice. 
Those who violate their fellow man often dehumanize their victims.
Just as they dehumanize their prey, we demonize them, other them, 
making them as far removed from ourselves as possible. 
We must recognize our capability of violating others day to day, through the power of words and harmful attitudes. 
We must utilize this opportunity for introspection and rebuke the fear of confronting the the prejudice and bias that exists within us all. 

——Nehmiah Broadie