Try that in a small town?

Circleville, OH. Population 14,106 (2021). A small town with a history, not unlike many others throughout small-town America. Mom ‘n Pop shops, quiet sleepy streets, and kids playing baseball or fishing in the pond. There are some good things about living in a small town, for sure. But….not for everyone.

July 4th, 1965 2023, Jadarrius Rose, an unarmed black man, fearing for his life as his truck was surrounded by an army of police with guns drawn, calls 911 asking for help. “Do what the officers are telling you to do,” he is told by dispatch. “I don’t feel safe,” he responds. “I don’t know why they’re trying to kill me.” Mr. Rose stopped his truck initially, but fearing for his life with multiple guns pointed at him, he pulled away in his truck and called 911. Tell me, what would you have done? Chances are, if your pigment is lighter than a skinny caramel macchiato, you’d stop the truck, give them your license, and be on your way. “Have a nice day, officer.” Unfortunately, Jadarrius has more of a dark-roast pour over look to him, and given our nation’s history of police violence, and violence in general toward people of color, I can’t say I blame him one bit. I’d be scared to death, too. And so would you. Honestly, I can’t even imagine what was going through that poor man’s mind.

The dispatcher convinced him to stop the truck and get out. With his hands in the air, unarmed, surrendering, the officer in charge of the k-9 unit released his dog with a command to attack. The trained police dog bit, mauled, and dragged down an unarmed man standing with his hands in the air. I’ve seen the video. It’s disgusting. These things happen in big cities and they happen in small towns, too. There is hatred and violence, racism, and oppression. We need more love and less hate. More kindness and less violence. We need more people to speak out against the racist history of our country and seek restoration, rather than defending their rights to guns and vigilantism. Perhaps there is more to this story and Mr. Rose could have done something different that would have avoided the escalation but again, can you blame him? After watching people of color be beaten, harassed, tased, shot, or choked out in the streets over and over again, what would you do?

This story, like so many others, breaks my heart and compels me to speak out for love, peace, justice, and unity. I hope it does the same for you. This is what we as humans need to fight for. This is “loving your neighbor”. Peace.