Rogerian Letter
Dear Greg Jones,
Americans have been grappling with the concept of racial equality since the inception of our country. I agree that over time, racial relations in our country have changed drastically, reflecting a general decreasing trend. However, recent events such as the shootings of unarmed men have been prominent in the news. With the presidential election in less than a month, both candidates have been devising strategies to combat this recent fluctuation. As a voter myself, I am deeply intrigued by how both sides plan to resolve the issue, and I assume you are too. The result of this election will undeniably have an effect on the state of racism in the United States, and determine whether the matter will be mitigated or escalated.
In the article, you assert that despite the recent boost of racial violence, America is becoming more tolerant of other races as time passes. You are correct in saying that our society has dramatically changed since we had slavery in 1860. I agree that the decline in participation in the Ku Klux Klan, as well as the percentage of white support Obama received in his presidential election, are progressive improvements that we have achieved. Additionally, I was happily surprised to learn that although the recent cases of racial violence are tragic, they are extremely rare, and only account for .03% of the cases law enforcement responds to.
I understand the difficulty that average citizens encounter when presented with evidence that the police may be at fault or guilty of any wrongdoing. I was raised to believe that police officers were the good guys, and my parents always instructed me to seek them out if I ever got lost in a public place. Furthermore, reasonable people tend to believe that police officers exist to keep them safe, not the other way around. However, no group of people should fear for their lives due to their race, and we can probably agree that action must be taken if people feel this way.
There are myriad examples of the decline of racism and racial violence in the United States. These examples range from protests and speeches to specifically defined laws regarding discrimination. Yet, racism had to exist or those laws would have been unnecessary. Consequently, due to their incessant conquest for publicity, the media will generally not hesitate to label a case as racial violence, when in reality the circumstances could be different. This is definitely true, but there wouldn’t be such an outrage from the black community if this were always the case.
Considering this evidence, it is easy to attribute the recent increase in racial violence to coincidence. However, upon examining the evidence further, one might question if there is an underlying cause to this uncharacteristic deviation from the norm. To some extent, it doesn’t matter how the media portrays these incidents. The fact is that, unfortunately, unarmed black men are dying at the hands of white cops. Ultimately, I believe that all be people should be treated equally, and people who feel that they are being wronged should have the ability to speak out.
Thank you,
Charlie Zorab
Americans have been grappling with the concept of racial equality since the inception of our country. I agree that over time, racial relations in our country have changed drastically, reflecting a general decreasing trend. However, recent events such as the shootings of unarmed men have been prominent in the news. With the presidential election in less than a month, both candidates have been devising strategies to combat this recent fluctuation. As a voter myself, I am deeply intrigued by how both sides plan to resolve the issue, and I assume you are too. The result of this election will undeniably have an effect on the state of racism in the United States, and determine whether the matter will be mitigated or escalated.
In the article, you assert that despite the recent boost of racial violence, America is becoming more tolerant of other races as time passes. You are correct in saying that our society has dramatically changed since we had slavery in 1860. I agree that the decline in participation in the Ku Klux Klan, as well as the percentage of white support Obama received in his presidential election, are progressive improvements that we have achieved. Additionally, I was happily surprised to learn that although the recent cases of racial violence are tragic, they are extremely rare, and only account for .03% of the cases law enforcement responds to.
I understand the difficulty that average citizens encounter when presented with evidence that the police may be at fault or guilty of any wrongdoing. I was raised to believe that police officers were the good guys, and my parents always instructed me to seek them out if I ever got lost in a public place. Furthermore, reasonable people tend to believe that police officers exist to keep them safe, not the other way around. However, no group of people should fear for their lives due to their race, and we can probably agree that action must be taken if people feel this way.
There are myriad examples of the decline of racism and racial violence in the United States. These examples range from protests and speeches to specifically defined laws regarding discrimination. Yet, racism had to exist or those laws would have been unnecessary. Consequently, due to their incessant conquest for publicity, the media will generally not hesitate to label a case as racial violence, when in reality the circumstances could be different. This is definitely true, but there wouldn’t be such an outrage from the black community if this were always the case.
Considering this evidence, it is easy to attribute the recent increase in racial violence to coincidence. However, upon examining the evidence further, one might question if there is an underlying cause to this uncharacteristic deviation from the norm. To some extent, it doesn’t matter how the media portrays these incidents. The fact is that, unfortunately, unarmed black men are dying at the hands of white cops. Ultimately, I believe that all be people should be treated equally, and people who feel that they are being wronged should have the ability to speak out.
Thank you,
Charlie Zorab