Kim Kardashian‘s website has taken a sombre tone today when she posted an essay raising awareness about the very recent deaths of two innocent black men at the hands of police officers.
“This week we watched Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, two innocent black men, get senselessly murdered by police officers. Like a lot of you guys, I watched the videos, and was appalled and completely heartbroken. I was left speechless, angry and numb.”
“I want my children to grow up knowing that their lives matter. I do not ever want to have to teach my son to be scared of the police, or tell him that he has to watch his back because the people we are told to trust—the people who ‘protect and serve’—may not be protecting and serving him because of the colour of his skin.”
But instead of gaining significant traction using the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter, as many have been using on Twitter in the awake of the tragedies, Kim is instead campaigning for direct contact to be made with legislators who can change the way these people are punished.
“The last thing we need is to fuel anger with more hate or violence, especially toward the many incredible police officers who risk their lives every single day to protect our families and communities,” she continues. “We must peacefully use the power of our voices and the strength of our numbers to demand changes in the judicial system so that brutality doesn’t ever go unpunished.”
Kim doesn't just speak to the unpunished crimes of the two most recent murders, but asks for us not to forget the many more innocent black lives that were taken at the hands of law enforcement.
"Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown, Eric Garner, Freddie Gray, Tamir Rice, Sandra Bland, Sean Bell...and unfortunately so many more. Hashtags are not enough. This must end now."
We couldn't agree more.
You can donate to the Castile's and Sterling's families using these links.