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It’s been a really terrible week for the United States.
First, a graphic video surfaced of a Louisiana man named Alton Sterling being fatally shot by local law enforcement. Sterling’s death was captured by innocent bystanders who shared the horrific experience on social media. Before an investigation into the man known for being a laid back guy who sold CD’s outside a local convenience store could even begin, another disturbing video, broadcast on Facebook’s live feed, emerged. In it, Philando Castille, an elementary school cafeteria worker from Minnesota was seen being pulled over by police for a broken taillight before being fatally shot with his girlfriend and her daughter in the car.
Black Lives Matter protests soon took place, condemning the killings of both African-American men and demanding transparency and justice from the law enforcement agencies involved. On Saturday night, an otherwise peaceful protest through the streets of downtown Dallas, Texas turned bloody when a sniper began firing on police officers in charge of protecting marchers. Five police officers were killed with more wounded, making the attack the deadliest incident for law enforcement since 9/11.
Though the news is bleak there is a ray of light amidst all the darkness. Over the weekend, while Police Chief David Brown spoke at a noon prayer service in downtown Dallas, a crowd of hundreds of kind citizens lined up to offer their gratitude to the men and women in blue.
What began as handshakes soon turned into full-blown hugging, a show of support and solidarity among the Dallas PD and the citizens they’re sworn to protect.
Will a 10 minute video of people passing out hugs begin to heal the damage caused by the alleged deep-seated racism and corruption in some of our country’s law enforcement agencies? Probably not, but it’s nice to see a video of people acting out of love, not hate, going viral for once.
(Via Daily Dot)