Juneteenth

Today, I'm going to expand a bit on a tweet I posted yesterday that explains why Juneteenth drives me up the wall.

This Juneteenth holiday, the suburb and gated community crowd will sniff their scented, lace handkerchiefs and congratulate themselves on being down with the movement and standing up for the oppressed.

Meanwhile, in the real world, in New York City, in the middle of the day ...

Male suspect opens fire in New York City, children nearly killed after getting caught in the crossfire. pic.twitter.com/7dKkrvEOWt

— Katie Daviscourt🇺🇸 (@KatieDaviscourt) June 18, 2021

When I posted my origin story on my blogiversary this year, I shared the damage I had done to my children through divorce and my ex-wife's descent into violent madness. That damage was real, but their experiences pale in comparison to what's going on in the video above.

I've watched it several times now. The tiny girl, who can't be over 3, is scurrying around in terror. The loud bangs from the gun have driven all reason out of her mind. The older girl, with courage and purpose that must certainly have come from experience, pulls the tiny one under her and shields her with her body. The boy, who has been hit by at least one bullet, can't do any more than desperately crawl away from his attacker.

None of these three will show up in our base crime statistics because none of them died. The girls weren't hit so they don't even count as shooting victims. This makes clear that the jump in murders is the tip of the iceberg. Below the waterline are massive increases in psychological trauma, whether that's from robbery, assault or simply being exposed to it.

When I see things like this and then hear about Juneteenth celebrations, I want to run around in circles, screaming incoherently. I want to grab the nearest racial justice warrior, show them that video, shake them and yell questions. Aren't those girls black? Do you have any idea what that experience has done to them? Does the world revolve around you to the point where you "doing better" has some kind of impact? What is wrong with you?

And that's my problem with Juneteenth. It's not about those terrorized kids and the scarred and callous people they may well become. Juneteenth is all about us.