Ahmaud Arbery 2.23.
I have avoided commenting on the Ahmaud Arbery incident. It is getting plenty of press, which is a good thing, and I am not as up to speed as I would like to be before commenting. But, I also have a leadership role in our community, and a responsibility to speak things into the light. I can’t pretend I don’t notice, or put that responsibility off on others. This didn’t happen in our community, but it could. It could happen anywhere as long as there are people who are afraid to acknowledge and speak out about it. We all know there are hateful, violent, unstable people out there, and tragedies happen every day for a multitude of reasons. Sadly, we’ve seen several of the most ridiculous examples this week alone.
So beyond speaking out and raising awareness, what else can I do? All the best solutions start at home, so that’s where I started too. There is an #IRunWithMaud movement. I’m too far out of shape for a respectable run. Instead, we hiked 2.23 miles as a family and discussed the different types of unfortunate racist, sexist, and bigoted challenges people have to face from hateful people.
I talked with my family about the Arbery case. We talked about the fear black parents and immigrants deal with and how they have to parent differently because of it. Amanda talked about the fear women face and how they have to alter their behaviors in ways a man would never think about. These fears are real and justified and that is NOT ok.
While we may not be able to do enough about all the evil in the world on an individual basis, we can at least educate ourselves and our kids. We can acknowledge it exists, call it out when we see it, and stand up for anyone unfairly targeted or abused. #antibully #fatherofboys
G.Willies Uniforms
Lifebuoy Bookkeeping
