A soul-searching moment

Posted 7/12/16

Across our nation in recent years, the names of too many cities and towns, too many civic spaces and gatherings, have become synonymous with tragedy.

From Columbine to Orlando, these incidents of …

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A soul-searching moment

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Across our nation in recent years, the names of too many cities and towns, too many civic spaces and gatherings, have become synonymous with tragedy.

From Columbine to Orlando, these incidents of mass violence – whatever the twisted motives of the perpetrators, whoever the innocents targeted – have left millions of Americans weary and worried. Some have grown desensitized and cynical, given the frequency with which the news seems to bring word of another sorrowful episode.

Baton Rouge, St. Paul, and Dallas joined the heartbreaking list of trauma-stricken locales last week. After the fatal shootings by police of Alton Sterling in Louisiana and Philando Castile in Minnesota, the nation watched in horror early Friday as news spread of the killing of five police officers – Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Michael J. Smith, Brent Thompson, and Patrick Zamarripa – and injuring of several others during a protest in Texas. It was the single deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Last week’s events mark the latest sorrowful chapter in what has become an intense national debate over race relations and law enforcement. They are also, more broadly, yet another call for all Americans to consider some deeply difficult questions.

Why, in a wealthy, stable, free nation, has such violence become so seemingly commonplace? How, given all of our resources and knowledge, are so many – including those in our most marginalized communities, and those who have proudly served in uniform – left to fall through the cracks? What has happened that we so frequently regard, and behave toward, our fellow citizens with such inhumanity? Where, from here, do we go?

We are, undoubtedly, amid a new moment of soul-searching in America. Divisiveness has grown palpable in many facets of our society, particularly in our politics. There is a troubling tendency, on all sides, to bend facts and events to fit a predetermined narrative, regardless of the reality or the totality of the story. There is a growing willingness, even eagerness, to view the world through a lens that comforts us or reinforces our existing notions, and to aggressively block out or dismiss anything that might challenge that stasis. There is a growing sense of apartness, of insularity, of grievance, of defensiveness. There is an eroding sense of common identity and possibility.

We write not to castigate, nor to litigate the issues of the day. We write to spur discussion, and to provide perspective.

This nation’s history is deeply complex, with chapters both proud and shameful, and ours is not the first time in which America’s mettle and fabric have been tested. Its people have a well-earned reputation for resilience. Its spirit has endured through existential challenges.

Let us remember all that binds us, and hold dear the pluralism – of culture, of faith, of ideas – that has been our most defining principle. Let us be thankful for all we have, and keep in our minds and hearts those whose circumstances are less fortunate than our own. Let us strive to always see the humanity in our fellow citizens, and together work toward a better tomorrow.

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