Standing on the Sidelines is No Longer an Option

The killing of Black men, in America, is becoming the norm rather than the exception. What I have seen, in the past several months, reminds me of the Civil Rights Movement of the ‘60s. I never thought the police department would be armed by the federal government with firearms, ammunition, tanks and who knows what else to use against their community. What message is our federal government sending?

Our voting rights have been challenged and we must fight to ensure there is no voter suppression in any state. At the same time, you have a responsibility to get out and vote. The motivation behind the events happening in Ferguson, New York, Florida, Ohio and many other states, can be changed. Local laws are made by local politicians. Yet there are so many Blacks who have chosen not to exercise this privilege of voting, despite the fact that many gave their lives so we could voice our opinions through votes. We must look at those politicians who support our ideas and will defend our constitutional rights. Why do we have a town that is majority Black, yet the leadership is White? How do we allow something like this to happen? Young people must get engaged in the politics of your cities, run for office or support someone who can and is willing to make a difference.

The protests in Ferguson received international attention. While we continue to tell other countries what they should be doing, we can’t get our act together in this country. The United States has more of its citizens incarcerated than any country in the world and the majority of those are Black. Blacks have always been incarcerated at a disproportionate rate compared to Whites for the same crime.

Yes, we have Black-on-Black murders which are just as senseless as those of police officers. The difference here, however, is there is usually an arrest and someone is punished for the crime. President Obama has spoken on this racial divide and Attorney General Holder is investigating the killing of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. It took years to make changes resulting from the Civil Rights Movement and it will take some time to make changes in this new movement.

In the next several weeks I will be meeting with Fairfax County leaders to discuss the roles of first responders. Topics to be discussed include: What are the roles and responsibilities of first responders? How do we improve community policing? What involvement is needed and required from the community.

As the President of the Fairfax County NAACP, I pledge to work diligently to ensure nothing like Ferguson or Stanford happens on my watch. With continued and open communication with our county leaders and community involvement, we can make major accomplishments. We all must be held accountable. Please stand with us and let’s work together to keep our community safe, strong and positive. Let us know your concerns. Contact me, Shirley Ginwright, at fairfaxnaacp@gmail.com.