I have been a staunch advocate against police brutality. Not because I am anti police, but because I am anti injustice. I have written quite extensively about my views whether be it here on my blog or via my social media pages. It is my duty as a writer to use my voice as a change agent. Watching videos of Brown and Black people get murdered by the very individuals entrusted with keeping us safe are becoming as common as an internet meme being shared and re-posted millions of times. Watching the killing of our people is becoming normalized and watching someone get murdered before our eyes should never feel normal. So when people say to me “Well, how about the number of cops who get killed every day in the line of duty? I never see you say anything about them” I get angry. Not because I don’t value the lives of the officers, but because unlike unarmed civilians, cops have made a conscious decision to risk their lives by choosing to be police officers. Moreover, every time I turn on the evening news or every time I log onto Facebook or Twitter I am not being bombarded by images and videos of cops being murdered. Why not? Because it is understood that death is a possible consequence of choosing to be a cop. Therefore, if a cop is killed in the line of duty we know they have made the ultimate sacrifice in performing their job function. This is not an expectation we have for the average American. Continue reading Why Police Officers Need to Be Held to Higher Standards