Outrage Over King Verdict

I’m ashamed of the city I live in. I feel the need to start a fight, buy a gun or just stand in my window and scream, “I’m fed up and I’m not going to take it anymore!” Why can’t a person of color be served by justice in the Southland instead of being repeatedly humiliated by this most sacred process?

I’ll get over my anger. I won’t buy a gun or involve myself in civil disobedience. I’ll get on with my life once again. I’ll teach my children to never ever trust or provoke a policeman, just as my parents taught me. I’ll vote my conscience and the other guy will win. I’ll sign recall petitions that won’t do any good. I’ll spend all my days being honest and hard-working and I’ll still be followed around many stores because I’m black and therefore a thief. I’ll try to carry myself with dignity and tell my children stories told to me of their ancestors who fought for survival under the authority of cruel plantation owners who beat them for sport and I’ll realize that nothing has changed.

ESTELLALEIGH FRANENBERG

Los Angeles