Letters: Culture of violence - it is who we are

ISSUE | SHOOTINGS

It is who we are - like it or not

I disagree with President Obama's statement, and Sunday's headline, "Not who we are." It's exactly who we are.

We live in a country that is becoming more racially divided, where black men are killed at a Minnesota traffic stop for a broken taillight or selling CDs in front of a Louisiana convenience store. That is who we are because it is happening.

It is who we are when the presumptive Republican presidential nominee is a misogynous, narcissistic bully who draws big crowds.

It is who we are when a mentally ill person can buy a high-caliber weapon and then use it on citizens. It is who we are when we allow an organization such as the National Rifle Association to own our politicians, who then worry about their NRA rating more than the people they are supposed to be serving. It is who we are when children are gunned down in classrooms, moviegoers in theaters, and police officers on the streets of Dallas, and nothing is done about it except hollow offers of thoughts and prayers from our leaders.

So I don't want to hear, "It's not who we are." Maybe it's not who we want to be or who we should be, but it is who we are.

|Cindy Fogarty, Schwenksville

Start by addressing white privilege

The unnecessary deaths of black men by police officers make me think about white privilege and encouraging Caucasian people to consider how it has played out in our lives. When I was introduced to the concept years ago, I thought about the challenges I had experienced growing up and my family's lack of wealth, and I didn't quite get it. But after reviewing my childhood and observing life around me, I reached a different place.

There is no question that the opportunity to get a good public education, my assumptions that I could secure a good job, and my expectations that I would be treated with respect by police and others are based partly on the color of my skin as a Caucasian woman.

Acknowledging white privilege and examining how it operates in our daily lives, and how individuals, policymakers, and organizations make decisions, might be a necessary first step to change the racial bias that people of color regularly experience in our country.

|Helene Dow, Philadelphia

Make America gun-free

The proliferation of firearms - especially with the states allowing the carrying of concealed weapons - makes it dangerous for police officers to make a simple traffic stop. There is only one solution that I hope we as a nation will arrive at some day - a gun-free America, similar to the United Kingdom, Japan, and several other countries.

Because of gun proliferation, none of us is safe. I hope we achieve a gun-free America soon, because more than 30,000 gunfire deaths a year is too high a price to pay.

|Maryellen Shore, Collegeville, maryellshore@comcast.net

A time for kindness and compassion

This is the moment when we must emphasize our commonalities and discover our inevitable interconnectedness. As American citizens and compassionate humans, we must pursue this cause.

Show kindness and patience to the individuals who populate your day - strangers as well as family and friends. Shine a light on people who are displaying selfless acts of courage and solidarity. Acknowledge your neighbors and passersby, if only with a smile.

Challenge yourself to truly learn about the "other" rather than being content with simplistic generalizations. So often we label people as "bad" after a cursory glance at behavior removed from its context. Everything is more than what it seems.

This is not to detract from the recent suffering or dishonor the fallen. It is to refocus and recognize the potential good in each of us. It is to believe that what happened, despite the inevitable tragedy, will not define who we will become as Americans. It is to understand the power of kindness and compassion, not to erase the past but to reorient our present state and future course.

Philadelphia was once fertile ground for a new nation. Let us again be a model for Americans everywhere. Let us see ourselves in one another. Let us start a revolution of compassion.

|Madelena Rizzo, Philadelphia