Dear Editor,

I am filled with outrage after watching another black man get murdered by a police officer in broad daylight. What Ex-MPD Officer Derek Chauvin did was use his badge as warrant to take a man’s life. And over what? An alleged counterfeit $20 bill?

George Floyd asked for help repeatedly, only to be ignored by Derek Chauvin and the three other officers at the scene. 

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Then to follow this tragedy, we learned EMT Breonna Taylor was gunned down in her own home by Louisville Metro Police Department during a no-knock warrant for someone they already had in custody! 

What happened to judge and jury? Our society has failed George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and so many more. I’m tired of being treated as “three-fifths of a person” as the U.S. Constitution originally stated, when black people were enslaved. 

As a parent to a black son and daughter, not only do I have to have that “talk” about the birds and the bees, about treating others as you would want to be treated, but I am forced to talk to my son specifically about how to handle himself during a traffic stop or coming in contact with police, due to him fitting the description – young and black.

It’s past time that we stand together to say enough is enough. Current practices and policies aren’t saving my children’s lives. We have to ALL push for policies, thorough vetting and community policing. 

I am fortunate to reside in a city with beliefs in community policing; however, I can’t say that I feel safe and respected when I leave the city of Wharton city limits. 

I will watch my son start driving next year and as a black parent I’m terrified that I will receive one of the horrible phone calls. A phone call telling me my son matched the description and was killed in “an accidental shooting” or “tragic mistake by police.”

This is why I am joining organizers this Sunday, June 7 at 2:00 p.m. on the Wharton County Courthouse lawn. Stand with us. Pray with us. Let everyone know that we cannot, as a nation, continue down this path of injustice and prejudice. 

We need to show the nation that here in Wharton, Texas, under the leadership of our police chief, discrimination is not tolerated, racial-profiling is not tolerated and all lives do matter. 

Silence gives consent. I will no longer be silent. 

I CAN’T BREATHE until I know that my family is safe. I CAN’T BREATHE until I know that I won’t be found guilty and criminalized because of my black skin. I CAN’T BREATHE until I matter. 

Steven Roberts

Wharton, Texas

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