But on the other side of fear is bravery. If you’re afraid and confused, that’s understandable. But don’t watch in search of the violence or looting, watch for the tender moments and positivity: Protestors doing the Cupid Shuffle in the middle of Newark, the cleanup in Minnesota, the neighbors who offer water and food on the side of the road, the kids who saved my local Target…that’s the core of who we really are.

If we don’t bear witness to these moments of injustice, they have the opportunity to repeat themselves. But the only way to truly change anything is to believe that there is a problem. But you still have the opportunity to be better than we ever were. It’s difficult to change decades of programming, even if we need to try. Some will say you are too young to fully comprehend and I say you are in the perfect position to be a catalyst for the change we need. Because this is a pivotal, purposeful moment and I don’t want you to miss one second of it. What you are internalizing, what messages are being sent and lost…and I worry. In the midst of all this good trouble, I think of you young folk, wondering what you’re possibly making of all this. As author Jason Reynolds wrote, “This is about a system that exists within this country that makes our lives seemingly a bit more expendable to the eyes of people in authoritative power who happen, most times, to be white.” This isn’t just about Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, or George Floyd. These protests that spread throughout the nation speak to the pain Black people have experienced. As my friend once put it, America is a pressure cooker set on high. Our nation has been creeping toward this inevitable explosion for over a century.

A fire that should have taken no one by surprise. Now here I am, watching my own city on fire.

Grown tiffany jackson