Pastor Dimas Salaberrios Urges Clinton and Trump to Dig Deeper on the Issues of Race and Policing

Donald J. Trump suggested “Stop and Frisk” as a means to help get guns off the streets of places like Chicago that are experiencing upticks in gun violence. Hillary Clinton touted police reform as a way to help race relations. Though the national stage is a good place to discuss these issues, when put into praxis on the local level, they often blow up when lived out in reality.

Police routinely get hot when African Americans bring up bad calls police made that resulted in the death of unarmed citizens. African Americans get upset when people ignore grave mistakes of officers and lump the whole of law enforcement together as sin and error-free people. Progress and trust will continue to be elusive if we do not all admit that the current model in place that breeds distrust on both sides does indeed need improvement.

I spoke with an officer about why the police use deadly force rather than shooting to wound an individual.

This honest officer said, “Officers are trained for torso shots only, and the situation is considered a threat until the assailant hits the ground.”

This is an example of the exigent need for quick reform. It doesn’t sit well with most Americans seeing the killings of unarmed people regularly splashed across their screens.

Americans are also tired of seeing government property on fire when riots break out. It’s sad that poor communities feel that if they do not vandalize, the press will not cover their story and their voices will not be heard. This situation is messy on all sides and something must change quickly. Both presidential candidates agreed on that point.

As citizens, we must be willing to hear all sides.

White America, be willing to not only hear but understand the pain African Americans feel when we lose unarmed people at the hands of police.