Ever since we started to experience the pandemic of 2020, I have been reminded of the Serenity Prayer.
God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can, and
The wisdom to know the difference.
One of the ways we have taken action these past few months was to 1) Wash your hands frequently, 2) Practice social distancing & 3) Wear a mask when you do go out into public.
While many have been practicing these CDC guidelines we still have the COVID-19 virus.
Then in the midst of all this, we have been reminded that this virus is affecting some in our community more than others. This is especially true of the African American community.
In the midst of this George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, & Breonna Taylor were all brutally murdered. Finally, enough is enough was being said by not just the African American community but my Roswell Community.
Gwendolyn Dukes, Richard Bonito, and their friends organized a peaceful protest on behalf of George Floyd at the corner of King Road and Hwy 92 in Roswell, Georgia on June 2, 2020. Dukes said, “Action speaks louder than words” as to why she and her friends wanted to get out and protest. Richard Bonito added, “We are not mad at the police, we are mad at the system.” They want to see changes for better policing, fixing systemic racism in our society, and encouraging their friends to get out and vote. While Richard Bonito voted in the last presidential election most in the crowd are closer to Gwendolyn’s age and this will be their first election.
My daughter’s generation is tired of seeing their friends mistreated. They want change.
I believe the timing of these deaths amid this pandemic might just be the perfect storm for bringing about change to fix systemic racism in our society.
Roswell young people in the protest realize that protesting alone isn’t enough. They know that this is part of the process to get their communities to make changes to the policies that allow for racism.
They are asking people to become informed about who is running in our elections and vote for those people who will enact change the changes tide of Systemic Racism.
Rather than being fearful of the rioting that has taken place, Peaceful Protestors are taking back the streets of their communities. They don’t want the rioters and looters to take over the conversation.
All over social media groups are forming to have peaceful protests. Go online and find a protest near you.
Plan to protest? Here are tips to reduce the risk of spreading #COVID19:
Wear a face covering
