I got into a heated discussion last night with some friends who are insisting that Alex Pretti brought on his own demise because he injected himself into a heated situation and became belligerent towards the agents. No pointing out that he was severely outnumbered, no pointing out that as a compassionate human being, he went to the aid of a woman who had been thrown to the ground, no pointing out that there were other ways to detain him if they were truly in fear, other than firing 10 bullets into his body, no pointing out that we now know the kind of human being he truly was: not a rebel rouser or a radical or a terrorist… just a decent human being who was dedicated to doing good in this world… Nothing made a difference. And this group of self proclaimed conservatives and defenders of the second amendment had the most critical comments for the fact that he was carrying a concealed weapon albeit legally.
There still seems to be a significant faction of people in this country who are hell bent on seeing anyone who does not agree with them as “ other “… no empathy, no compassion. No acknowledgment that Alex Pretti could’ve been their son or brother or friend. I laid awake most of the night wondering how to process that, how to encourage people to see things more openly. And it’s god-awful frustrating to me because I fear we are powerless to change it.
I absolutely adore the way you've expressed yourself here, these are thoughts that I've had but never been able to give them structure or words. So, thank you, for this amazing piece
I got into a heated discussion last night with some friends who are insisting that Alex Pretti brought on his own demise because he injected himself into a heated situation and became belligerent towards the agents. No pointing out that he was severely outnumbered, no pointing out that as a compassionate human being, he went to the aid of a woman who had been thrown to the ground, no pointing out that there were other ways to detain him if they were truly in fear, other than firing 10 bullets into his body, no pointing out that we now know the kind of human being he truly was: not a rebel rouser or a radical or a terrorist… just a decent human being who was dedicated to doing good in this world… Nothing made a difference. And this group of self proclaimed conservatives and defenders of the second amendment had the most critical comments for the fact that he was carrying a concealed weapon albeit legally.
There still seems to be a significant faction of people in this country who are hell bent on seeing anyone who does not agree with them as “ other “… no empathy, no compassion. No acknowledgment that Alex Pretti could’ve been their son or brother or friend. I laid awake most of the night wondering how to process that, how to encourage people to see things more openly. And it’s god-awful frustrating to me because I fear we are powerless to change it.
I absolutely adore the way you've expressed yourself here, these are thoughts that I've had but never been able to give them structure or words. So, thank you, for this amazing piece
We feel you, sister.