Unity or Divisiveness

Joe Biden (candidate for president) recently addressed the shooting of another unarmed black man, Jacob Blake. Police kill black people at a rate of nearly 250% higher than they kill white people. Police kill Hispanics almost 200% more often than whites.

Vice President Biden spoke about the shooting of Mr. Blake’s in a Facebook post. He described the incident in a way that helps the country deal with, what seems to be, an endless stream of police brutality disproportionately targeted toward minority citizens. Joe asked us to “put [ourselves] in the shoes of every black father and black mother in this country.” A simple remark that promotes a greater understanding of the realities faced by our fellow countrymen.

A multi-cultural, thriving democracy depends on each of us making an honest effort to understand and learn from the experiences of others. When Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act in 1965, he said, “their cause must be our cause.” President Johnson was rallying the country around the common cause of ending voter suppression. Joe Biden is a leader that can help facilitate the kind of healing and unity our country needs to rally around today.