Day 5: We Still Need To Say Her Name- #BreonnaTaylor
- Kailee Tones
- Mar 14, 2021
- 3 min read
It has been one year since police officers shot and killed Breonna Taylor in her apartment. Which was the wrong person of which they were looking for. It has been one year, and the officers still have not been criminally charged. https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/one-year-later-breonna-taylor-s-mother-and-advocates-still-want-accountability-for-the-police-who-killed-her-1.5346206
Breonna Taylor was a 26 year old girl, her life was just beginning. She was happy, and excited about her future. She was going to be a nurse, as she loved helping people. She had a very good relationship with her boyfriend Kenneth Walker. She spoke often about how she wanted to have a baby, and was so excited at the thought of having children. She was all about family, and her friends. She was loving and caring. She was sleeping.
When the police came to her apartment, she was asleep, and woke up scared for her life. Both Breonna and Kenneth were innocent, but feared for their lives. People of colour have become accustomed to fearing for their lives in the hands of authorities.
Breonna's mother is still fighting for her, as are many people around the world. If we don't keep saying their names, who will? If we don't fight for the black lives that have been lost and justice has not been served in life or in death, then we aren't doing enough. It is not enough to say that #BLACKLIVESMATTER anymore. They don't just matter, they should be seen as equal to their other race counterparts. Their lives should not be taken without a moments thought.
There has been a documentary "Say her name: Breonna Taylor", made by ABC. I have shared the link to the first two parts below:
There are twenty parts on YouTube, which should continue playing after each video finishes. This is a story highlighting what happened, with visuals and Interviews. It shows just how unjust some people can be when you give them a badge and a gun.
RAYSHARD BROOKS, 27 - FELL ASLEEP IN HIS CAR - SHOT AND KILLED
GEORGE FLOYD, 46 - ACCUSED OF COUNTERFEIT - KNEE TO NECK
ATATIANA JEFFERSON, 27 - AT HOME WITH NEPHEW - SHOT THROUGH WINDOW
AURA ROSSER, 40 - AT HOME - SHOT AND KILLED
STEPHON CLARK, 18 - IN GRANDMOTHERS BACKYARD - SHOT AND KILLED
BOTHAM JEAN, 26 - EATING ICE CREAM AT HOME - SHOT AND KILLED
PHILANDO CASTILLE, 32 - PULLED OVER AT A TRAFFIC STOP - SHOT AND KILLED
ALTON STERLING, 37 - SELLING CD'S & DVD'S - SHOT AND KILLED
MICHELLE CUSSEAUX, 40 - AT HOME - SHOT AND KILLED
^^^ These are just a few of the endless names of black people of which were murdered by police officers. Police too often go way too far in situations. They see a black person and instantly become suspicious just because of their skin colour. They are holding something, it must be a gun. They are going for a run down the street, they must be running from a crime they committed, they are wearing a hood, they are doing something suspicious. The list goes on. A list that would never apply to a white person.
Then when it comes to locking up the bad guy, the police officers are rarely ruled responsible. Sometimes, they get a sentence, but a lot of time they get away with murder, literally. I often wonder if laws really apply to those who enforce them. If they do get charged, or go to jail for any wrong doing, it seems rare and light compared to fellow citizens. Also citizens shouldn't fear the police, they should fear a world without them. They were designed to serve and protect. WHO FEELS PROTECTED?
Please try your best to do what you can. Whether that may informing people around you about the police brutality most commonly happening to people of colour. Or, marching in the streets. Just remember that everything you do today can make a difference tomorrow.
^ Breonna Taylor's mother. ^
Thank you humans for reading today.
x
Kailee
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