For Dallas
This quote about the shootings last night in Dallas is both perfect and ...tragic:
What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence and lawlessness, but is love, and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or whether they be black. So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the families of those killed tonight in Dallas -- but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love—a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke.
Why is it perfect? Well, I'll leave that up to you to determine.
Why is it tragic? Because I changed the quote. It's not about last night in Dallas. The last line really reads:
So I ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King—yeah, it’s true—but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love—a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke.
Bobby Kennedy said this almost 50 years ago. We have a long, long history of racially motivated violence in our country and we've not done nearly enough about it.
When will it be time for change?