Orlando. My heart is broken. Our world is broken.

This morning, as many of us did, I woke up and read the horrifying news about the mass shooting in Orlando. A shooter open fired in a gay nightclub, killing 50 and injuring at least 53. I won't say his name. We don't need to know his name.

I waited to hear what happened. Will this be declared an act of "terrorism", or brushed off as a failure on the part of our broken mental health system? Was he the enemy or home grown? Are we in further danger? Is our country under attack?

Why do we need to wait to have the news media frame this? It was terrorism. He was a terrorist. Yes, we are in danger, and whether or not it was homegrown, or sponsored by an actual group, our country is very much under attack.

It's under attack by the news media, telling us that only brown people can be terrorists, and thus, promoting Islamophobia and racism. It's under attack by judges, who slap rapists who brutally assault unconscious women on the wrist.

Our country has taught people to victim blame.



And victim blame.

 

Senseless acts of violence occur and the first thought for some is that they "deserved" it.  That disgusts me. The current political state of our country disgusts me.

We are FAILING our people. We can do so much better than this, America.

I leave you with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr's letter from a Birmingham Jail.