Stop Killing Us

By Sara Smith, HMHS Class of 2022

Speech delivered at the Black Lives Matter rally at Haddonfield Memorial High School – June 24, 2020

Silence is never the answer if we want changes to be made, so please speak up and use your platform, no matter how big or little it may be.

This is nowhere near a trend or just a chatter around town, these are people’s lives that had to be put in the ground.

Black Lives Matter, and that should not be up for debate, senseless killings are happening all over America, and we woke up a little late.

A little late to see that the discrimination, injustice, racism, and hate has been here for over 400 years, but those who turn a blind eye, are those who do not have to live in fear.

Please educate yourself and try to understand what a black person has to go through on a daily basis and why we want this to end. I know buildings are burning, and I know violence has occurred, and I know this won’t bring back the ones who have been murdered.

But please try to realize, none of this would have happened, if a man was not killed in the surveillance of the public eye. George Floyd was where we drew the line and said enough is enough, so yeah maybe not every single cop is bad, but the system itself is corrupt.

Change needs to happen, and it needs to happen now, how many more deaths is this country going to allow?

We need to start living by the words, “Liberty and Justice for All”, because right now I know we are not and this country is going to fall.

Why should my skin color be the determining factor of death or life? Did these police officers realize they were going to take someone’s husband or wife?

So yeah this country may be great, but not as great as it can be. We can do better and we have the capability.

For some this may be nowhere near a reality, but for others … The color of their skin is the enemy.