“When you’re accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression.”
The national conversation we find ourselves having reflects a deep imbalance in the natural order of things.
From the Bible to the Declaration of Independence to the Voting Rights Act, the quest for equality has been an unending procession toward a concept that should be guaranteed and self-evident.
However, the reason we’re where we are in 2020 is because the laws may speak of some utopian existence, but the reality on the ground is harsh, uneven and far too painful.
Today centers around George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, and we say their names, but they’re just the latest in a long line of casualties -- their stories the incarnation of a much bigger problem. A silent menace, a thumb that has tilted the scales of justice for far too long.
What we want is equal protection, in the same way that we all abide by the same set of rules. What we need is for the social contract to respect us the same way we respect it. For the other side to uphold its end of the bargain, just as we do.
No privileges, nothing extra. Just being treated the same would go a long toward removing the paralyzing fear that has become an unbearable burden on our backs.
Is it too much to ask for?
Written by Rodrigo Azurmendi
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