Don’t Shoot

He didn’t have to shoot. It saddens me that a 16-year-old boy was shot in the head for simply going to the wrong house to pick up his siblings. Ralph Yarl is his name, and it’s a miracle that he is still alive. I feel for his parents and family, and hope that he can live a full and healthy life. We all know that this was a race issue just like every other issue in America. I’ve never understood racism and I never will.

At what point in our life did we have this shift to where now guns are the answer for everything. What happened to Yarl didn’t have to happen. There were many things that the White 84-year-old man could have done. He could have first had a conversation with Yarl to understand why he was at his house. If he was afraid, he could have called the cops. There are so many things that could have happened differently.

I have asked different people why Black people are hated so much. One of the most common responses I get is “because of slavery.” To me, that’s not an acceptable answer. To me, slavery is an excuse because there is absolutely no reason why I should be hated because I’m a few shades darker. If you’re going to judge me, and if you’re going to hate me, then judge and hate me based on my character and not my skin color. Life is hard enough, and all this senseless killing is ridiculous. When will enough be enough? Don’t shoot. Let’s just live.