The recent murders of the black men and women that have reached the media have awoken something inside all of us. For black people what we are seeing is nothing new. It does not mean that I am not moved; I can't explain how it makes me feel when I see another black person snuffed out because of the colour of their skin. How it reminds me of the inequality faced by black people all over the globe. We can not run from racism because it is everywhere; in every country, on my TV, in sport, in film and radio, it goes on behind closed doors in every organisation whether it's the police, education, politics...the list goes on.
Living in this world as a black person is very difficult. It is made worse by people that deny that racism is still an issue or say that white privilege doesn't exist. They eradicate our experiences and take away responsibility from themselves in the process.
What happened out there: when a black man was assumed to be writing a cheque that would bounce and the police were called and they took him and knelt on his neck until he died and the other officers present looked away as he struggled for his last breaths. The intimacy of that killing, the way he knelt and pressed the life out of him as he begged was truly horrific. It was evil. That officer didn't see George as human, not even sub-human. The mad thing is, that it happened, because it could. This world as it is right not allows black people to die in the most inhumane ways; it isn't rare, it is every single day. We are told that we are lesser than, unworthy of good jobs, good homes, good sex, a good life.
The worst thing people can do right now is dismiss responsibility, feel hopeless or helpless. The change starts with us. What happened out there started in that officers head and heart and it was shaped by the world we live in. It has to start inside, you have to challenge yourself, recognise thoughts and comments that are rooted in racism and white supremacy, speak out when you see injustice big and small, defend black people even if it means having a fall out with your friends and family. The more you do it, the easier it is. You might feel afraid of getting it wrong but it's worth the risk when it's a matter of life and death.